Transformed!

We have been invited to experience the presence of a loving God, who desires for us to come into His presence, to present ourselves just as we are, in our state of unrighteousness before Him so that we can be called righteous and holy, clothed in the riches of Christ.   In order to experience that right
relationship, we have to appropriate God's antidote for our sin. Romans 2 poses the question:
(4) do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?

Our good and faithful God is calling us into relationship with Himself through His Son, Jesus Christ, who loved us so much that He gave His life for us.  He did for us what we could not do for ourselves - and He is calling, inviting us to come before him and experience His incredible kindness, to avail ourselves of His cleansing power, and to experience the transformation that only He can bring.

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God is calling us to come into His presence with a sense of humility, and to allow Him to transform us into conformity with the image of Christ.  Romans 12 says:
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

15-year-old Yasir Moore was making plans.   He was getting ready for his first job interview and went into a local Target store in Raleigh, North Carolina to get a clip-on tie.  He emerged from the store with much more than he had bargained for.

Yasir learned that the store did not have clip-on ties. But, three employees of the store - Dennis Roberts, Cyndi Moore and Cathy Scott - came to his rescue, according to a Good Morning America report on the Yahoo!News website.

Cyndi explained, “When Dennis was tying the tie, we took the time, ‘Look presentable, tie your shoe laces, tuck your shirt in,’ we were giving him pointers...He was just soaking everything in, taking it all in." Yasir also learned how to shake hands and look his interviewer in the eye.

The report says that Moore's mother, Najirah Parrish, told ABC News station WTVD-TV in Durham, North Carolina: "They could have just sold my son a tie...But they took the time, helped him tie the tie and talked to him. They treated my son with dignity, respect."

And now, after two interviews with a Chick-fil-A restaurant at a mall near his home, ABC News learned that Yasir was going to get that first job. The manager, David Langston, told Moore in the food court, "I think we are ready to offer you a job at the mall.”

Out came the cameras and a few special guests from the Target store who were hiding, patiently waiting for him to get the good news.

A Target shopper took a picture of Yasir's initial encounter at Target, which went viral. Audrey Mark told ABC News, "I didn’t expect the kindness of strangers...You don’t expect humanity on aisle 11 of a big-box store."

Yasir Moore learned quite a few principles from the encounter on aisle 11.  He's quoted as saying, "Any advice you can, grab it...These people right here helped me so much. Be respectful to people who are trying to help you out. Soak it all in."

Yasir picked up some pointers about presentation, and he came out of the store not only "dressed for success," sort of speak, but with a new sense of confidence.   And, apparently, he made quite an impression on his future boss at Chick-Fil-A.

On this Ash Wednesday, many will be presenting themselves before the Lord to begin the Lenten season - 40 days, excluding Sundays, leading up to Easter, or Resurrection Sunday.   Today, let's think about how we present ourselves to God.

Well, for one thing, as we approach God, it's not about the outward look.  Now, I do believe that proper dress when we come into God's house is appropriate, but we don't "dress up" in order to impress God - He sees us as we are, on the inside, and as the Bible says, our righteousness, who were are in our human attempts to be good, is as filthy rags before Him.   There is nothing we can do to earn the favor of Almighty God.   We recognize that only through Jesus can we come before the throne.

So, the list of components of a proper presentation before God can include:

Humility.  On Ash Wednesday, we can approach God recognizing that we are nothing in and of ourselves.  We acknowledge that we desire a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ, and express a willingness to empty ourselves before a holy God.

Repentance.  Themes of sin, sacrifice, and death are associated with Ash Wednesday.  As we come before God with a contrite heart, we depend on the Holy Spirit to identify those areas that are not pleasing to God, to confess our sins, and to accept His forgiveness.  

Awe.  We present ourselves to Jesus with a sense of who He is - the great and mighty God, maker of heaven and earth, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.  As we get just a glimpse of who He is, we can recognize how unworthy we are of His love, but that He has expressed it toward us anyway. We can gain a sense of how He wants to work in our lives.

Whenever we emerge from one-on-one time with God, as we have presented ourselves before the Lord, we can have confidence in His love and faithfulness, and we can face the challenges of life with a knowledge that He is with us.  Jamir presented himself before the Target store employees and came away with a different look and boosted confidence.  He was more prepared for the next presentation that would yield a job for him.  God is calling us to present ourselves to Him and to allow Him to prepare us for what He has called us to do.