If you grew up in the United States, you more than likely had some Play-Doh at some point. My mom actually made ours. That stuff was and is one of the greatest tactile learning experiences. It’s soft and squishy, yet satisfying to play with. They make all these different toys to play with it. My son has one where it’s a head and you fill the teeth with the Play-Doh. There’s another one I’ve seen where you put the Play-Doh in the top and pull down a lever. The Play-Doh is then squeezed out all these different shaped holes. It doesn’t matter what the shape or mold is, Play-Doh will fill it and take that shape.
In 1 Samuel 8, Israel demanded a king. Up until that point, God had been their leader since He led them out of Egypt. He used people like Moses and Joshua, then judges and prophets to guide them. They didn’t like that they were different from all the other countries of the world. They went to Samuel and told him they wanted to be like world. He prayed and God granted their request, but He warned them first about what would happen. Verses 19-20 say, “The people paid no attention to Samuel, but said, ‘No! We want a king, so that we will be like other nations, with our own king to rule us and to lead us out to war and to fight our battles’” (GNT). They wanted to be like Play-Doh and take the shape of the mold of the world around them.
Romans 12:2 warns you and I of this same mentality. It says, “Stop imitating the ideals and opinions of the culture around you, but be inwardly transformed by the Holy Spirit through a total reformation of how you think. This will empower you to discern God’s will as you live a beautiful life, satisfying and perfect in his eyes” (TPT). Paul is warning us not to be like Play-Doh where we are being squeezed into the mold of this world. We are called to be set apart. To live differently. God has always wanted His people to be peculiar. Our flesh wants us to blend in and be like the world, but God has so much more for us if only we will let Him be our guide rather than the world. The Holy Spirit in you is greater than the world and the molds it wants you to fit into. He empowers us to live outside of this world’s mold. It’s time we break the mold of living like the world and live Spirit led lives.
Photo by Franco Antonio Giovanella on Unsplash
Devotions by Chris Hendrix 