Change is Good! You Go First!

Have you ever gotten really excited when God told you that He is going to do a new thing?

I’m certain that most of us have experienced the sheer delight of hearing: “Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it?” (Isaiah 43:18-19) NKJV — read it at BibleGateway.com.

When God Does a New Thing

I have felt that joy in my heart as well, but at times I failed to take into account the work that it would take to get that “new thing.” Recently God did a “suddenly” in my life a “new thing” suddenly.

I was blessed to move from one home to another, and while I experienced the sheer joy of moving to such a wonderful place, I also experienced the enormous amount of work and exhaustion it took to receive this blessing. It took twenty-three days of intensive labor, and the after-effects of the move are still lingering!

There was packing, unpacking, throwing things away, donating things, losing things, accidentally throwing away things that were expensive, organizing, reorganizing, etc.

Then there was adjusting to new routines, forgetting where I put things, learning new routes to get to familiar places, discovering new places, and on and on.

I had to leave behind and let go of so many things that were “familiar” to me. Oh- and not to mention- the excruciating number of hours spent on the phone taking care of practical matters such as change of address and Internet connection!

The Real Work of Change

I say all of this to say, how ready are we to embrace the work that change will require in our lives? We cry out to God for change, but just how ready are we to do the sometimes-messy work of “getting there?”

Changing any part of our lives will require letting go of the old to embrace the new. It requires letting go of negative mindsets, getting rid of habits that do not serve us well, releasing grudges, choosing forgiveness, letting go of unhealthy relationships, crucifying pride, sacrificing “our will” in favor of God’s will, and literally embracing again and again the surrender it all takes.

We decrease so that Jesus may increase, and we pray for God to do a work in our hearts and then to give us the grace we need to walk it all out!

Change is Good — Are You Ready to Go First?

So, be encouraged in your new season of change. With the help of Holy Spirit, you will get there. Pray and ask the Lord what needs to change.

Are you willing to do the work? What needs to go? What needs to stay? Take a moment and really sit with those questions. What do you need to do more of, and what do you need to do less of? What do you need to pack-up and move out?

Change is good — You go first!!

If this resonated with you, learn more about Pastor Carolyn’s coaching and ministry.