COPYCATS!
DFO1397
3/9/81
--Are You a Good Copy of Jesus?
1. YOU'RE SUCH A GOOD BOY, DAVID! YOU'RE SUCH A GOOD EXAMPLE TO YOUR SISTERS! You should be proud that they all want to copy you & say what you say & do what you do. It shows you're a good boy & they're doing the right thing. That's what all students do, they copy their teachers.
2. (David: But I'm not teaching Techi!) Oh, but you are, Honey! Yes, you are! (Maria: You teach her every day, all day.) In some ways she will learn more from you, what they call one of her peers, one of her fellow-children.--She'll look more to you to learn than even to her older teachers.
3. That's the responsibility God gives an older brother! They'll look to you to see what's right & what's wrong, & they'll copy you, everything you do. So you have to be very careful you do the right things. The oldest child in the family always has a great responsibility of bringing up the other children.
4. So don't be surprised when they copy everything you do, because that's what they're supposed to do! God knows that parents will do their best on the first child & teach them everything the way they should, because they give the first child more attention than any other child. Therefore the first one should be the smartest one & the best one & the best behaved. He has the most responsibility & should set the best example to the rest of the children, if properly trained & inspired.
5. SO AN OLDER BROTHER OR SISTER IS VERY IMPORTANT, HE'S THE MOST IMPORTANT CHILD IN THE FAMILY! You have a big job to teach & train your little sisters. You're with them a lot so you can teach & tell them what's right. Even when Mama & Daddy & their teachers & others aren't looking, you're looking!
6. You're the oldest child, you're the older brother & you're the boss & they're supposed to do what you tell them to do, because you're older & you know what's right. You wouldn't tell them to do anything wrong, would you? You just tell them to do what's right & they should obey you.
7. God will never give you a load on your shoulders more than you're able to carry. Now your shoulders are small, so He'll just give you a small load. You have two little disciples right now, your two little sisters.--Daddy's got thousands! But the Lord has given you the responsibility of two little disciples, your two little sisters, to teach, train & help them.
8. Just like in our Family, the older brothers who are in the Homes have to teach the younger brothers, don't they?--Both spiritually & physically. The older children have to teach the younger children. Just one Mama & one Daddy couldn't possibly take care of all those children themselves, could they?
9. So older brothers are very important! You're the most important child we have! Every one of them is important, every one of them is going to have a job, but because you're the oldest one, you're the most important & have the biggest job--to teach them the right things. You're their most important teacher because you're one of them & they'll listen to you, they want to be like you.
10. IT'S REALLY FUNNY HOW TECHI COPIES ALMOST EVERY WORD YOU SAY! It's just a little annoying sometimes, I know, & it kind of bothers you, especially when you're trying to say something & she's always interrupting you in the middle. You can call her "Little Miss Echo"!
11. When I was a little boy we used to say, "Copycat! Copycat! Copycat!" We said it because we older ones didn't like the little ones copying us. But that's what they're supposed to do! Who else are they going to copy? The big folks are too big for them to really understand, so they copy the biggest children!
12. So don't get too annoyed when sometimes it might be a little irritating. Your little sisters can understand you better than they can Sara & Dora, because you're down here on their level & they can look at you eyeball-to-eyeball! They can understand you.
13. THAT'S WHY JESUS HAD TO COME DOWN & LIVE WITH US: TO BE OUR BIG BROTHER! God is so high up & so far above us that we can't even see Him, much less understand Him. So He had to send Jesus down here to be our Big Brother so that we could look at Him & hear Him & understand.
14. We could look at Him & see what He did & listen to what He said.--And we're supposed to copy everything Jesus said & everything Jesus did, right?--He's our example. Jesus is God's Son & we're sons of God too, so that makes Jesus our Big Brother!
15. Jesus is our older Brother!--We're following our older Brother!--We're copycats! We're all copycats! Every one of us are copycats, we're all trying to copy Jesus, because He copies God.--So don't worry about your little sisters being copycats, that's what they're supposed to be! And the more they copy you, the better!
16. --Which is why it's so important for you to do the RIGHT things, you know? Because if you do the wrong things, they'll copy those too. They'll think it's the right thing because you did it, & they'll do it too.
17. ONE OF THESE DAYS FOLKS ARE GOING TO SEE YOU IN YOUR LITTLE SISTERS, because they're such copycats. They're going to look like their big brother & act like their big brother & talk like their big brother & they're going to love you almost the most of all, because they love their big brother! (Prays:)
18. So Lord bless him & keep him & help him to be a good big brother & not to mind his copycats, because that's what they're supposed to be. All the little brothers & sisters are supposed to be copycats, they're supposed to be copying their older brothers & sisters & mamas & daddies & aunts & uncles, older members in the Home.
19. And all of us are supposed to be copying YOU, Jesus, because You're a copy of God, & the more we copy You, the better! You're the original, Lord, & we're just copies of You. So it's good for us to be good copies & accurate copies exactly like You, then we'll be very good copies just like the Original--all good copycats, in Jesus' name. Amen!
20. GOD'S THE ORIGINAL, WE'RE JUST MADE IN HIS IMAGE. We're like images of God, reflections of the Lord, just copies of God, because Jesus is just like God & we copy Him. So we're all copycats of the Lord, & it's good to be copycats.
21. That's the whole idea--multiplication is the name of the game! Copying is the whole thing! That's what we're here for, to copy, keep copying & making copies & more copies! Every disciple's a copy & every child's a copy & every body's a copy, even Jesus!--He's a copy of God. So copying is our business!
22. When He said, "Go ye into all the World & preach the Gospel to every creature", & "Make disciples of all nations", what was He saying?--Go make copies!--More copies of the Gospel to preach to more people to make more copies of them, more disciples!
23. So be a good copy! Be a good copycat of Sara, Mommy & Daddy & Jesus & then you'll make very good copies, & your sisters will be good copies of you, all your disciples. They're your little disciples, so take good care of them & make them good copies. Amen? PTL!