CHANGE

“CHANGE”

By Pastor Mark Taylor

There are only two that do not change.  This is comforting to know that both of these have a plan for the redemption of man and they will never change their minds about Their love for us.  God our Father and Jesus Christ our Savior.  "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19).  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever.  “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)

But God does want to change us because we need it.  “Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”  (Isaiah 43:19).  When God does a new thing, that means that there are changes about to happen.  He's an agent of change.

Change is hard, yes. It brings loss, it brings sorrow, yes. It also brings opportunities for growth, for learning, for happiness. Change is neither good nor bad; it's what we make of it. Why not attempt to make meaning of it, to find a greater purpose through it? Why not meet it with the bravery that is inside us?  Remember you cannot step into the same river twice.  The water has changed.  Everything in lives changes.

People seem to be naturally resistant to change. There's a saying: If nothing needs changing, you don't need leaders  Leader’s look to see what God wants to change, and it's their responsibility to change it. Change is difficult, but it's what leaders do.  But remember: People find change difficult.  It's threatening, it's uncomfortable, and it provokes an internal reaction.  Change is all about yielding to the Holy Spirit.  Not yielding to the Holy Spirit is the most significant factor in preventing change.  It all comes down to attitude.

“No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse. Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.” (Matthew 9:16-17)

In the days of Jesus they put wine and milk into skins. The problem with wineskins is that as they get older they become harder and more brittle. They aren't as flexible as they used to be. If you put new wine into an old skin, the new wine was still fermenting, which means it was releasing gases. The gases would cause the old skin to burst. If God is going to do a new thing in your life, He needs flexible skins that He can pour His new wine into.  What about you? Are you willing to let God do what He wants?

There are two kinds of change.  The first type is when things change around us and we just “learn to live with them”.  We feel that we have lost control but we try to “hang in there”.  This may happen when we lose a job, a loved one, or have major health problems.  We feel the loss and begin the grieving process.  Some people do not move into the second type of change.  If we do not move to the next level of change, our circumstances will control our happiness and limit our ability to be all that God wants us to be.

The second type of change occurs when we change with the circumstances.  This change is when our lives change. We look for a new job or we go back to school and learn a new skill.  It also happens when someone experiences a spiritual change and turns to God. The difference is we undergo a real change inside our hearts and minds.  In making any change you have to do some “soul work”.  God has planted within us a need to make meaning and purpose of our lives.  With the help of your relationship with Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit, you can deal with change in a positive and productive way.

One of the keys in changing things is to be open to the Lord’s leading  in new and different ways.  When problems are created and the things we are doing are not working, then we have to “Do Something Different”.  “If you always do what you have always done, you will always get what you have always gotten”.  So if you want to see positive change, you need to look at change from God’s point of view.

In the process of change you cannot worry about what others think!!

You and I have to realize and remind ourselves that change is going to happen.  We are also going to experience loss with any change whether it is good or hurtful.  So we need to understand that something good can come out of change, even when it is hurtful:

Romans 8:28  does not mean that all things “are good”, but it does mean that if you will allow the Lord time, He will “work all things together” to help you with your change.  It will be for your good.  “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose” 

Also in change, it is important that we realize that change occurs in small steps.  It will take time, and it will take a good support system like your church to help you.  The Bible tells us that it is important that we have fellowship with each other: “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son, cleanses us from all sin” (I John 1:7).

Will you allow the Lord to help you change into a better person, a healthier person, a person who will  learn how to pray, study God’s Word, and keep His commandment to “Love One Another.”   “A new commandment I give unto you, That you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” (John 13:34).