Let God Put You In New Clothes

My friend and I chuckled at this image:  Almighty God trying to put us into new garments.  We had both been challenged that our Lord wanted to do this for us — reclothe us to be more like him.  But we’d been resisting.The picture of our kids when they were babies came to our minds.  My infant daughter would squirm and yowl when I tried to fold her into her snow suit the first winter she faced.  Her pudgy arms would thrash, her little feet would kick, and her face would scrunch up. She would cry as though I were killing her.So it is with me, as my Lord tries to reclothe me.  I am comfortable wearing my old garment.  It’s well-worn, molded to my body, and adapted to my personal needs.  It’s soft and unrestrictive.  I like it!But God wants me to put on fresh garments.  He has created new clothes just for me! He says they fit my body perfectly. He tells me the outfit  will accommodate to the changes that I have gone through recently.  It’s a fresh style, designed so to be useful in an area of service He’s calling me to enter. The fabric even reflects my transformed mind; it wraps me in the  colors and texture of praise, instead of despair.So why don’t I quit squirming and yowling?  Why don’t I just relax and let God put me in my new clothes?Frankly, the clothes God offers may be uncomfortable. I won’t like to wear them.  And a new outfit — with the new mind and new ministry that goes with it — that feels scary!So I pray:  LORD, endow me with faith in a special way so that I will relax, trust you and let you clothe me. Help me to believe this new garment you want me to put on will be exceedingly perfect, supremely comfortable, and beautiful beyond my imagination.(Adapted from Isaiah 61: 3;  Rom. 13:14; and  Eph. 3:20)