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Let all that I am wait quietly before God,
for my hope is in him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress where I will not be shaken.

Psalm 62:5-6 (New Living Translation)

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;
my hope comes from him.

He alone is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.

Psalm 62:5-6 (New International Version)

God, the one and only—
I’ll wait as long as he says.
Everything I hope for comes from him,
so why not?
He’s solid rock under my feet,
breathing room for my soul,
An impregnable castle:
I’m set for life.

Psalm 62:5-6 (The Message)

It is a good thing to receive wealth from God and the good health to enjoy it. To enjoy your work and accept your lot in life—this is indeed a gift from God.

Ecclesiastes 5:19 (New Living Translation

Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God.

Ecclesiastes 5:19 (New International Version)

Yes, we should make the most of what God gives, both the bounty and the capacity to enjoy it, accepting what’s given and delighting in the work. It’s God’s gift!

Ecclesiastes 5:19 (The Message)

Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love.

Ephesians 1:4 (The Message)

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.

Ephesians 1:4 (New International Version)

Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.

Ephesians 1:4 (New Living Translation)

And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.

Ezekiel 36:26 (New Living Translation)

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:26 (New King James Version)

I’ll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you. I’ll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that’s God-willed, not self-willed.

Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Renew a loyal spirit within me.

Psalm 51:10 (New Living Translation)

Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Psalm 51:10 (New International Version)

God, make a fresh start in me,
shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.

Psalm 51:10 (The Message)

Spiritual renewal comes from God alone; we cannot manufacture it ourselves. We must depend on him to change our hearts and lives. Ask God to give you the refreshment and new life your spirit needs.

by Rick Warren

God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. . . . We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him. Romans 8:29 (MSG)

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From the very beginning, God’s plan has been to make you like his Son, Jesus. God announced this intention at creation: “Then God said, ‘Let us make human beings in our image and likeness’” (Genesis 1:26 NCV).

In all of creation, only human beings are made in God’s image. This is a great privilege and it gives us dignity. We don’t know all this phrase covers, but we do know some of the aspects it includes: like God, we are spiritual beings – our spirits are immortal and will outlast our earthly bodies; we are intellectual – we can think, reason, and solve problems; we are relational – we can give and receive real love; and we have a moral consciousness – we can discern right from wrong, which makes us accountable to God.

But the image is incomplete and has been damaged and distorted by sin. So God sent Jesus on a mission to restore the full image that we have lost.

What does the full “image and likeness” of God look like? It looks like Jesus Christ! The Bible says Jesus is “the exact likeness of God,” “the visible image of the invisible God,” and “the exact representation of his being” (2 Corinthians 4:4 NLT; Colossians 1:15 NLT; Hebrews 1:3 NIV).

People often use the phrase “like father, like son” to refer to family resemblance. When people see my likeness in my kids, it pleases me. God wants his children to bear his image and likeness, too. The Bible says, “You were . . . created to be like God, truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:24 GWT).

God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him.

Romans 8:29 (The Message)

For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Romans 8:29 (New International Version)

For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

Romans 8:29 (New Living Translation)