07/06/2026
Devotional Thoughts 🤔💭
Who Do You Look Like?
Dr. Chikezie O. Madu
Psalm 115:4–8; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Romans 12:2
I’m sure you’ve heard it said of couples that the longer they stay married and are deeply connected, they begin to look like each other. You may be expecting me to confirm that, but I will disappoint you a little. There is no solid scientific evidence to prove that physical resemblance develops simply from being together over time.
But there is a deeper truth related to that. In the spiritual world, resemblance is very real; we become like what we worship.
In the Bible, the Hebrew word often used for worship is shachah, which means to bow down or to prostrate oneself, while the Greek word proskuneo carries the sense of moving toward something in reverence and devotion, even to the point of kneeling or kissing toward it. These words go beyond outward acts and point to a posture of the heart, a steady orientation of attention and affection. Worship is not just bowing down or singing songs. Worship is attention, admiration, focus, and devotion, and over time, what we consistently focus on begins to shape how we think, how we speak, and how we live.
In several places in scripture, idols are described with shocking language to strip away any illusion of greatness. The prophets at times refer to them with terms that can be translated as worthless things, detestable objects, or even dung-like things, emphasizing how empty and degrading they truly are. What people exalt, God often exposes as lifeless and unworthy. The implication is sobering. What we give our highest devotion to may not just be powerless, it may actually be beneath us.
There is also a striking contrast between how idols are made and how God forms us. The Bible uses words like carved, molded, fashioned, and formed to describe idols. It takes time, focus, energy, and intention. Attention is invested. Effort is poured in. Time is sacrificed. In many ways, worship begins long before the bowing. It begins in what we choose to build with our time, our thoughts, and our energy.
Idolatry is not limited to statues of wood and stone. We can shape our own idols through what we prioritize, what we pursue, and what we cannot do without. Sometimes the idol is success. Sometimes it is money or status. Sometimes it is another person. Sometimes, more subtly, it is ourselves, when our desires, opinions, and comfort take the highest place and everything else revolves around them. In that sense, a person can become their own idol, constantly serving their own will and bowing to their own preferences.
Psalm 115 describes idols made of silver and gold. They have mouths but cannot speak, eyes but cannot see, ears but cannot hear, and the psalmist makes a sobering observation that those who make them and trust in them become like them. If a person worships something lifeless, they gradually lose sensitivity. If a person worships something empty, they begin to feel empty. If a person worships something blind, they begin to lose spiritual vision. Worship is not just what we say. It is what we rely on, what we trust, and what ultimately shapes our identity.
On the other hand, the more we focus on Christ, the more we begin to reflect His character. His patience begins to show up in us, His love begins to flow through us, and His humility starts shaping our responses in ways that feel natural over time. What we constantly look at with our hearts becomes the template for our lives. We imitate what we admire, and we absorb what we consistently expose ourselves to, often without realizing it.
Sometimes this process is not obvious. It can even hide inside religious activity. A person can begin to worship worship itself, focusing more on the experience, the feeling, the performance, or the recognition that comes with it rather than on God. At that point, the form remains, but the focus has shifted. The heart is no longer bowing to God but to the benefits or the image associated with worship.
The danger is slow forming because no one wakes up one day and decides to become hardened, anxious, proud, or empty. It happens gradually through small shifts in focus and quiet compromises until resemblance is formed. What we repeatedly honor, we eventually resemble.
But this process can be redirected. We can be transformed by the renewing of our minds, which means we can intentionally change what we focus on and allow God to reshape us. Breaking free begins with awareness, asking questions about what holds our attention, what fills our thoughts, and where we turn in moments of stress or excitement. From there, it moves into choosing to replace what shapes us negatively with what builds us spiritually by spending time in God’s word, engaging in prayer, surrounding ourselves with people who reflect Christ, and filling our minds with truth instead of noise. That is the invitation before us, not just to worship, but to become like the One we worship.
