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Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" 5 He asked, "Who are you, Lord?" The reply came, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 6 But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do." 7 The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. 8 Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 For three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. (Acts 9:1) So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! (2 Corinthians 5:17) It has accurately been said that today the only thing you can count on is change. Although I do not like it, that statement is true. I used to think that the older people got, the more they resisted change. Then I realized that every time we successfully did something new at high school church camp, the next year the teens often said we had ‘always’ done it that way before. Isn’t it interesting that when we really like something it seems like it should always be there. This thinking
has brought the demise of a number of churches over the years that needed
to move or change their culture, but refused to do either. Many businesses
have died because they refused to enable the changes that must happen in
order for life to continue.
I remember when Linda and I were first married. She liked wheat bread and I liked white. We could not afford to buy both, so guess what kind of bread I prefer today? I did not change my preference to wheat breads overnight. We ate some wheat and some white. Gradually, we had more and more wheat and less and less white bread. Did I complain? Yes. Did I eat sandwiches anyway? Yes. Were the changes good for me? Yes. Sometimes, we just need time to grow into something. In other cases, we resist change because change brings uncertainty of the future. We focus on the uncertainty rather than the opportunity for growth, which change also brings to us. When our family moved from Colorado Springs to Bakersfield, my girls did not want the change. They, as did my wife and I, loved Colorado Springs. However, we felt God was calling us to Bakersfield, so we moved. Ten years later, when our girls were in their early twenties, they thanked us for the move. They knew growth was enabled in a way that never could have happened for them in Colorado Springs. I still don’t like change a lot. But, it helps me to think and/or to read about the life changes Joseph (in Genesis) and Paul (in the Book of Acts) went through that brought significant blessing to their lives. May you be aware of the blessings God has in store for the congregation you attend, as well as you personally, as you move through the times of transition in your life. Dawn Breaker #73: When I accepted Christ I became a new creation. God is still re-creating me. Similarly, each congregation is being re-created by God if we but listen. "There are a number of
guidelines I try to follow in life and ministry. I find that when I follow
them, situations sometimes become like the rising of the sun. There
is a luminous glow turning to great light, and occasionally, inspiration.
When I don't follow these adopted guidelines, they sometimes become Don
breakers, making life frustrating at best. I do not suggest
you should live by all the principles I choose for my life. If they
are helpful for you, make them your own. They work for me."
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