Sep
17
Imitators
Filed Under Devotional
I wouldn’t know from experience, but it seems it would be hard for an actor to play the role of a historical figure that is well-known or a fictional character with an established library of acting. It’s one thing to be creative and make the character your own. But, if the character is already known by the audience, your success will be judged by how closely you mimic what they already know.
You read stories about these actors watching lots of video, listening to recordings, and generally doing everything they can to become good imitators. They practice the mannerisms, the vocal tics, the body language, and even how to properly slouch or shuffle. If the actor does well, then it cements that image even further in the minds of the audience. If he doesn’t, then something seems off, and the audience is distracted by the mismatched acting.
It’s that kind of dedication and focus on imitation I think of when I read Paul’s instruction:
“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Ephesians 5:1-2
If we imitate well, then people around us see God more clearly. We cement the image of who He really is. If we don’t imitate well, then they get confused and distracted and miss our message altogether. We need to work at this. We need to put some effort into this. This isn’t the five-minutes-of-study kind of imitation. This is the role-of-a-lifetime kind of imitation. Treat it as such.