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Pastor's Blog

Resolution In Change 2-12-18

By February 12, 2018April 24th, 2019No Comments

It is impossible to live on mission and not embrace change. For instance, consider Abraham. In Genesis, we discover that Abraham is called by God to leave all that he has known to embrace our Lord as the one true God and establish a new kingdom that God will bless to be a blessing to the world. There are a ton of unknowns to Abraham that he needs to trust as knowns to God. The simple truth is that embracing this mission meant he had to embrace change. The difficulty arises that although not all of us to the same degree, all of us to some degree have a negative reaction to change. I often admit that I love change, but only when I initiate it. I find it difficult to deal with the change I deem as imposed on me. This is the dilemma my personality poses to me. How do you react to change?

Scott Mautz, in his book, Find The Fire, identifies the fear of change as an anti-muse or a fire dampener. In other words, the fear of change causes us to miss out on God’s preferred future for us if we let it. He notes:  “Our brains are wired to value longevity. Change threatens our sense of stability and robs us of our sense of control.” The good news is that there is an antidote to the fear of change.

To reverse the adverse effects caused by the fear of change you need to turn resistance into resolution. This begins by believing you are capable of change. This requires a determined insistence to your doubting self that you can succeed on the other side of change. It is natural to believe that routine or sameness is always good, but neither is totally sustainable or healthy for a lifetime in many areas of our life. Consider your walk with Christ. The Spirit’s work of transforming us is not possible in the life of a person holding tightly to their old life and way of doing things. Mautz suggests:

“Think of change like a software upgrade. Change can yield You 2.0 – a better version of yourself.”

At the core of our resistance to change is a feeling of becoming untethered. We feel like we have lost control. Of course, one could argue that one of the greatest lies we tell ourselves is that we are in control of much of the truly uncontrollable in our life. We seldom can control situations, but we do have the power to control our reaction to circumstances. Therefore, the fear of change can be lessened and eventually overcome by remembering what the change won’t change about you and the world around you.

When we are faced with change, it is helpful to become a learner and discover the reasons for the change. Allow yourself to embrace the strengthening case for change. It is helpful to even take a further step and get involved in the change.

Lastly, to overcome the fear of change focus on what you can control. We have the power to control our reaction to change. We have the power to either deliver greater chaos in the midst of change or calmness (God’s peace). We may even have the power to contribute to change being a positive experience versus a negative one as we lovingly help others overcome the fear of change.

Consider Abraham again. God calls him to live on mission. How does Abraham respond?

“By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going” (Heb 11:8).

It is faith that leads to obedience to God’s promise and calling. Abraham lives out of the Hebrew writers definition of faith: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Heb 11:1). Such faith is not a vague hope grounded in imaginary, wishful thinking. Instead, faith is a settled confidence that something in the future – something that is not seen but has been promised by God – will actually come to pass because God will bring it to fruition. Therefore, biblical faith is a confident trust in the eternal God who is all-powerful, infinitely wise and eternally trustworthy. When we are rooted in Him, our unchanging God, we, like Abraham, are able to embrace change and live on mission.

I am so thankful to be on mission with each of you. I know God has a preferred future for us as Crosswinds. I also know we will encounter change. Let’s overcome the fear of change together and embrace our unchanging God, trusting that what He has promised He will do.