When I grow up...

When I was a kid, I had several favorite Major League players. One of those players was Fred Lynn, a rookie centerfielder with the Boston Red Sox in 1975. To this day, he is the only player to win the Rookie of the Year award and the Most Valuable Player Award in the same year. I spent hours in my backyard trying to make amazing catches jumping against our fence like Fred Lynn jumping against the wall in Fenway Park.

Like many kids, I had a dream to be a Major League Baseball Player and I wanted to be one like Fred Lynn. No one had to tell me to practice like Fred Lynn or imitate his style of play. I did it because I was in "10 year old awe" of Fred Lynn.

I've pretty much given up on my dream of being a Major League Player. At 41, I'm not expecting anyone to call and offer me a contract. But these days, I have a dream of being like someone else. I dream of being like Jesus.

Early on in my following of Christ, someone told me I was supposed to become like Jesus. Romans 8:29 teaches that God is conforming all of Christ's followers to the likeness of Christ and my job, I was told, was to cooperate with God in this process. I honestly wanted to do this. It seemed like the least I could do since He died for me. It was the right thing to do for a follower of Christ and I wanted to do the right thing.

Something changed a few years ago though. Becoming like Jesus became something I deeply wanted more than something I was just supposed to do. By God's grace, I have come to the realization that Jesus lived "the good life". I don't mean this in a moral sense, though Jesus lived a perfect moral life. I mean this in the sense that He lived with more joy, peace, love and generosity than anyone that has ever lived. He showed that real living is about giving. He lived a fulfilling life. He loved life and lived it the way the Heavenly Father created it to be lived.

I'm not jumping into fences anymore. I am jumping into the Word of God to discover how I can be like Jesus and I am asking my Heavenly Father for grace to help me on the way.