Being Like Him

As far back as I can remember, my mom has always told me to be careful what I say or do because my little sister and her friends look up to me.  If I mess up, they might follow my example.  I used to think that was silly.  Why would she look up to me?  I'm her sister, for crying out loud.  The older I've gotten, the more I've heard the same thing from other people.  My daughter looks up to you.  Remember that you're a leader to younger girls.  I'll admit I used to think that was an excuse for adults to try to convince me (and other girls my age) to do the right thing.

As time has passed and especially over this last year or two, I've noticed that what adults have told me is true.  Younger girls do look up to me and my friends.  The more I think about it, the more I realize that's a big responsibility.

I've always been the oldest child in my family, so I think it's taken me longer than most to realize how much my little siblings do look up to me.  I've never had an older sibling I admired.  But over time, I've slowly begun to realize that my sister has looked up to me as a leader and a role model since she was a baby who would mimic my silly hand motions and short words.

A month or two ago, some of my close friends and I went to our church's youth group and spoke to the middle school girls about purity.  I was a little concerned that they wouldn't care what we were saying, that they would think it was silly that girls only five or six years older than them were coming to speak.  However, the moment we sat down in the chairs and began to talk, the girls watched us attentively.  They seemed to genuinely want to hear what we had to say.  Many had eager questions for us about our opinions on dating and premarital sex and teenage pregnancy.

That night was a moment when I realized that younger girls do look up to me.  The way I live my life is being closely watched by the young girls around me.  My actions may even be repeated.

I don't know how old you are, but even if you're one of my youngest readers, there are girls younger than you who are watching the way you act and the things you say.  They look up to you and are watching to see how you decide to live your life.  Somewhere right now there is a little girl who wants to be just like you.

Process that for a moment.

There is a little girl somewhere who wants to be you.

This should drastically affect the way we treat the people around us.  How could I ever stand to snap at my mom over the phone when there are younger girls watching me and thinking to themselves, "She's really cool.  I want to be like her.  It must be okay to treat my mom like that."  How could I ever wear immodest and provocative clothes that I wouldn't feel comfortable seeing on my little sister?  How could I ever switch from boyfriend to boyfriend before the eyes of young girls who are watching to see how they're supposed to be in a few years?

We are their example.

Sometimes I hate considering myself to be any kind of role model because I make so many mistakes every single day.  I'll never be "good enough" to be a true role model for young girls.  Jesus Christ should be the One we strive to be like.  We should want to be like Him.  However, not all little girls understand that fact.  Instead, they look to older girls like you and me when they want to know how to act and who to be like.

We'll always mess up.  We're sinful.  We're human.  The fact that little girls are looking to us to see how to act should inspire us to strive to be the best role models and leaders we can be.  Since we'll never be good enough role models on our own, let's strive to be like Jesus Christ.  What better way to encourage and lead little girls than by showing them Him through us?