When Things Don’t Change
Image by the|G|™ via Flickr
In my 38 (almost 39)years on this Earth, I have seen so many things change. I have seen myself get older, my children transform before my eyes and become teens, and my career path change quite a few times. Change is inevitable.
The New Year has begun and for many it is a new start. It is a new opportunity to make some changes in our lives that maybe we didn’t have the gumption to do before. The types and quantity of resolutions are endless.
The problem is when things don’t change.
You’re still the same weight. Your marriage is still a mess. Your kids still hate your guts. Your finances are still a wreck. You still hate your job.
The blame game begins on the things that didn’t change. Despair and disappointment set in and you’re done.
The year comes to a close again, and you resolve to make “the next year”, the “year” everything changes, and the cycle continues on. The failure to see change continues.
The following reasons things don’t change sometimes are things that I have come to understand about myself and still walk through and wrestle with all the time. I don’t claim to have mastered them, but I believe they will help you.
1) We don’t see the change in the circumstances around us is because of our failure to see the change that needs to take place inside of us.
Many times things need to change inside of us in order for things to change before things can change in the outside world. We have attitudes, mindsets, and ways of thinking that need to change. Perhaps you are filled with pride or you lack mercy, or you lack character. If the way we think or see things doesn’t change, we would doom everything we want to accomplish. Left to our own devices, because of the sinful, fallen nature we have, we would mess it all up. We may see this as God torturing us or denying us what we want but this is His mercy on us that He doesn’t gives us what we want, when we want it. This is definitely a tough pill to swallow. No doubt.
2) We don’t see change because we are looking for something outside of Christ that can only be found in Him alone.
This one is huge. Many of the things we desire for ourselves are merely a substitute for something we can find in Christ alone. Whether it’s security, love, acceptance, or provision, God wants to fill all of these things in our lives. All too often we turn to our jobs, our spouses, our kids, or even doing good things to fill the longing of our hearts. The problem is that they never bring lasting joy to our lives. God is jealous for our hearts and He will not let anything bring true fulfillment outside of Him and what Jesus did on the cross.
I have no doubt that all of you wrestle with these things in varying degrees. There may some of you that this may be an eye-opener for you. My prayer for you (and me) is that we will have ears to hear, eyes to see, and teachable heart to allow God to reveal us those things we need to learn. That we would be able to look back on the previous year, and see how far God has brought us all.
The one thing I am grateful for that doesn’t change is how much Jesus loves you and me.
God bless your New Year
Kevin
