All tagged change
Our devotional reading today regarding quantity vs quality membership in churches is one that really strikes home. I have had this conversation with pastors, and others In the church many times before, and have even had a prophetic dream regarding it. Isaiah is quite right when he says that those who should see... often do not.
Continuing with the subject of answered prayer this morning, we come to understand that prayer changes the world. It not only changes us and that small halo of life which surrounds us, but the world as a whole.
The strongest people I know are those who are “poor in spirit”. This is a life that was not chosen for them, but one which they chose for themselves. Do you know such people? Are you one of them? Perhaps you are wondering what I mean by being poor in spirit. Well, the very first blessing that Jesus teaches us in the Beatitudes is that of being "poor in spirit" and He does this for a reason. These are the people that yield their individual spirits to the Spirit of God. They have laid down their own personal strength for the strength of God Himself.
As I read Oswald Chambers this morning, I was touched by the message of offering ourselves to God, and then allowing Him full reign in changing us and perfecting our lives for His service. Chambers used the words of Paul to illustrate that we should present our old self as a drink offering and then allow Him to pour us over the altar.
New Year's Days are like new life, they offer us the opportunity to begin anew, but for this to be realized we must first let go of the old and grasp hold of the new. We must be willing to accept the change and transformation that our new beginning offers us. Yesterday was New Year's Eve, and should have been a time of remembrance, but for so many people it is just an excuse to party, get intoxicated, and revel in the sinful world. However, for Christians, and those seeking Jesus, New Year's Day offers us an opportunity to refocus our attention on the renewal of our faith and living a more righteous life. Which of these describes us? Are we satisfied with recovering from another hangover, or are we ready to accept the positive change that Christ’s transformation offers us?
We say that we pray every day, and that might be true, but is our prayer a momentary request, or is it a fervent plea? Do we step into, and out of, our prayer closets unchanged by the experience of having knelt or laid prostrate before God? Are our prayers from the depths of our hearts and being drawn as if by a pump from the deepest wells of our souls? Once again, do we walk from our place of prayer a changed person, or simply pleased that we can mark this item from our list of tasks?
When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior It is only natural for us to want to add who He is to who we are, and not lose a single part of ourselves, but when we change, it always demands that something be left behind. Each time we experience change in our lives we become new creatures in certain ways. Our faith is one of the biggest agents of change we will ever experience. For those who know Christ I ask you to look back at who you were before you started your journey with Jesus, and witness to others about His amazing transformative power in your life. Then focus on today, and tell them how you have been changed since yesterday… speak of the man you fed lunch to a few hours ago, the person you clothed, the moment of enlightenment in last night’s prayer. The joy you woke up with this morning. Tell them that they will lose a part of themselves, but that they will be made new each day.
When we pray in contrition, and confess our sins, do we ask God to not only forgive us, but to change our hearts as well? In the midst of our sorrowful and broken hearts, do we ask Him for help in cleansing us of the desire to continue on in sin? Are we looking for more than God’s pity and mercy as He forgives, and ask Him for His transformation as well? After He had forgiven someone Jesus said “Go and sin no more”, but don’t we need help in doing this? Yes, so Pray for God to make our spirits right!
Our hardest, and most painful lessons in life are generally the ones that change us most completely, and can remake us at a very basic level. It is easy to teach someone how to do a certain thing, like to make up their bed when they get out of it, or brush their teeth each day, but to teach them to be a different person... not be afraid of heights, or to love God more intensely, requires a much deeper experience, and that often involves suffering, and affliction.