Skip to main content

Family Identity

Leaning down to peer at my face the man at the other postal window asked me, “Are you a Simpson?” “Yes,” I answered not recognizing to whom I was speaking. “Oh my,” he continued,”I knew your sister Joy.” After exchanging a few more pleasantries I realized this man indeed did know my family members, I just didn’t know him. He knew I lived in Seattle, Washington over the past three decades. In parting I said.” Well. I guess I’ve been marked as a Simpson.” “Indeed, he continued,” Your father stamped his imprint on all of you.”

Reflecting on this brief encounter I thought how could this man, a stranger to me, in a city of over 1.9 million people identify me as a Simpson by just my features? He did say that I looked just like my sisters. Isn’t this what Christ told His disciples when they asked Him to show them the Father? He replied if you have seen Me, You have seen the Father.

What if I, who names the name of Christ, had the same goal? What if I emulated Christ and followed God’s Word so closely that anytime, any where people would recognize God in me? My prayer is to be a copy of Christ to have the Father’s imprint on me inside and out.


Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived
that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled;
and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
Acts 4:13

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Songs in the Night

This week marks eight years since the sudden and unexpected passing of my late husband Winston. That was a strange land for me. The land of loss and death. At first I needed to hear others sing because the song in my heart was frozen with grief and I was traumatized. I’d sing God’s song later with help from others. There were tapes I listened to that reminded me of the Lord’s song. It was the voice on the radio or the television that told me God would bring me out of these trials. It was the voice of my mother telling me and reminding me of God’s faithfulness to me in the past. How could I sing the Lord’s song in a strange land? In the next phase on my journey through grief after the sudden death of my husband I tried to sing along with those who were on the journey with me At first I’d only get a few words out before the tears started to flow. I kept trying day after day to sing along. I was reminded of God’s word. I was strengthened by constantly hearing the words of faith and ...

Elisha, The Provision is in the Obedience

Sometimes I've felt that I've only had very little to give so why give it at all. This morning the thought came to me "All you you have is all you need to give." This thought came as I was reading the following passage in II Kings 4: 42 A man came from Baal Salishah, bringing the man of God twenty loaves of barley bread baked from the first ripe grain. "Give it to the people to eat, "Elisha said. 43 " How can I set this before a hundred men?" his servant asked. But Elisha answered, "Give it to the people to eat," For this is what the Lord says:" They will eat and have some left over" 44Then he set it before them and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the Lord. This man only had twenty loaves to give to the prophet. The principle at work is: All that we have is all that we need to give. When we obey, God gives the increase. There are many examples in the Bible of this principle in action: Like the widow at ...

Dormant Does Not Mean Dead!

Last fall I could feel the chill of winter creeping into the atmosphere. What would happen to my beautiful red velvety  geraniums that brought me so much pleasure during the summer? I hated to say good by to them.  I wondered could they possibly live through the winter and bloom again  if  I brought  them in from the approaching  frost,  I was willing to see if they could. The wooden pot was very heavy so I enlisted some help to bring it into the unheated pool room. All winter long I watched indifferently as they began to shed leaves.  For months they lived without one drink of water from me, their neglectful owner. I began to ask myself why did I  even bother bringing them in if I wasn't going to care for them?  The dying brown leaves still did not move me to water the plant. One tenacious geranium kept  hanging on for dear life. Five months later spring arrived....