In the suggested meditation section of July Daily Bread messages, the question is asked, “What is the voice of God saying to us?” We are asked to consider is it in whispers, in the beauty of creation or in the faces and eyes or expressions of people we meet.
I am continually amazed at the way the Holy Spirit speaks to me. Just a few weeks ago I was struggling coping with a particular health issue of bronchial pneumonia that my wife Betty was enduring. I was being kept awake at night with her coughing and worried about what I should do to help her. Suddenly out of the blue a thought was placed into my mind, “New!” This thought had nothing to do with my current situation, but the message to me was very plain and clear.
As I reflected on this message, I was reminded of the new events that are taking place in the World Church as well as in the Australian Church. We have gained new leadership and new areas of assignment in many areas of the Church. And alongside these changes we are being challenged to listen for God’s voice speaking to us and bringing about a spiritual revival and awakening. My thanks rise up to my God for the way in which these changes are coming about. Thinking about becoming new, my thoughts were led to write the following words.
To take on something new can be very exciting and stimulating for your well-being. I vividly recall how exciting it was to sell our home of thirty years in Sydney suburbia and move to another home in the foothills of the Blue Mountains, around 15 minutes from each of our four children. We became enthusiastically involved in redecorating and landscaping the property and received so much joy and satisfaction from the results achieved. You have probably experienced similar incidents in your lives.
These kinds of experiences and outcomes echo the renewed call to servanthood we encounter in the challenges confronting us as a Christian community today. This is a call to each of us involving acceptance, renewal and a moving on to better and broader horizons for the church. I am sure we all agree that change is inevitable.
Down through history, mankind has been continually challenged to change their ways of living and thinking because of new insights and discoveries. Many revolutionary songs have been written capturing the theme of change. Bob Dylan’s “The Time’s Are A Changing” is one that comes to mind.
In his book Developing the Leader Within You, John Maxwell writes, “It is helpful to remember that change can be seen as either revolutionary (something totally different from what has been) or evolutionary (a refinement of what has been). It is usually easier to present change as a simple refinement of ‘the way we’ve been doing it’ rather than something big, new, and completely different.”
Over the past several years, we have witnessed a new surge within the church challenging us to move on from where we have been resting and be transformed into new communities for Christ. This is most certainly a new time for each of us to dare to be involved in the challenge of change.
At different times we may have all felt like Lucy in the popular “Peanuts” cartoon when she was leaning against a fence with Charlie Brown. “I would like to change the world,” she said. Charlie Brown asked, “Where would you start?” She replied, “I would start with you!” But is this the right response to the question, “Where would you start?”
A Middle-Eastern mystic said, “I was a revolutionary when I was young and all my prayer to God was: ‘Lord, give me the energy to change the world.’ As I approached middle age and realized that my life was half gone without my changing a single soul, I changed my prayer to: ‘Lord, give me the grace to change all those who come in contact with me, just my family and friends, and I shall be satisfied.’ Now that I am an old man and my days are numbered, I have begun to see how foolish I have been. My one prayer now is: ‘Lord, give me the grace to change myself.’ If I had prayed for this right from the start, I would not have wasted my life.”
I suggest this is our starting point. If we are to be part of the transformation taking place within the church, we need to be looking at changing ourselves – our focus, our attitudes, and our commitment. Paul wrote: “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 NRSV).
This verse signifies a profound transformation that occurs when someone enters into a relationship with Christ through faith. It highlights that a person’s old way of life, characterised by their previous moral and spiritual condition, is replaced with a new identity and a fresh start in Christ.
Paul’s message shows we can often have desires that are different from God’s. We need to submit every desire to Him and allow God to change us. In some areas, this may be a process.
Sure, there will always be resistance to change. In another “Peanuts” cartoon, Charlie Brown says to Linus, “Perhaps you can give me an answer, Linus. What would you do if you felt that no one liked you?” Linus replies, “I’d try to look at myself objectively, and see what I could do to improve. That’s my answer, Charlie Brown.” To which Charlie replies, “I hate that answer!”
There are a number of reasons why many of us, like Charlie Brown, resist change. Some of these reasons include - we have not been part of the change process; our routine will be disrupted; fear of the unknown or failure; we are unclear of the change; we are too satisfied with the way things are. These are the obstructions we struggle with as we come to grips with what is happening around us.
Creating “newness” requires additional commitment on our part, as we work at understanding the change and making it a part of our lives in building for the future. As Paul has told us, if we are to become new, we need to live in Christ. I believe in change and its power to expand one’s life as well as the church. If we want a brighter and more challenging future, let’s start the process with ourselves!
I believe that God indeed has a new work for us to do. Let us open our hearts and minds to the Holy Spirit, which enlightens and empowers, that we might more clearly envision the road ahead of us.
Bill Gillard