Becoming More Like Jesus: Stop Trying, Start TrainingSample

Earlier in this reading plan, we considered the movement from isolation to community as one of the ways that the Holy Spirit invites us to explore as we seek to become more like Jesus.

As part of our discussion, we looked at the illustration of training for a marathon in a community and how that can be applied to our spiritual lives. Today, I want to look at running a marathon from a slightly different vantage point.

Running a full marathon can certainly be done on an individual level. However, many popular marathons also offer a marathon relay, where between two and five runners work together as a team to complete the full 26.2 miles. This allows runners of different ages and talent levels to come together for a common goal.

In many ways, the idea of participating in a marathon relay provides us with a wonderful picture of how God intended His people to live.

This brings us to the fourth way the Holy Spirit invites us to lean into as we attempt to stop trying and start training: a multi-generational approach to training in godliness.

Becoming more like Jesus is a lifelong journey of transformation. Whether we are young, old, or somewhere in the middle, we all have a role to play in the spiritual formation of those in our community.

Grandparents and great-grandparents, who are you passing the baton of your spiritual life to? If there is still breath in your lungs, then you still have an opportunity to share your story. Your children and the generations that will come after them need your testimony to be written on the walls of their hearts.

Parents, who are you being mentored by? Who is speaking life and wisdom from the past into your heart? And finally, are you prioritizing time to disciple the next generation of followers of Christ? Your children, their friends, and the kids on the fringes of society who have no one to guide them.

Children, you are never too young to stand up and testify to the goodness of God. Children, who are you seeking out from your parents or grandparents' generation to mentor and teach you the ways of Jesus?

Regardless of where we are on the continuum of life, we must keep returning to the question, "Who am I becoming? Am I becoming more or less like Jesus?"

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