Change Leads to New Beginnings

This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

Change comes in many forms in our lives. It might come forcefully like a hurricane, or creep along incrementally like a glacier. It might come in the form of a difficult choice, a new opportunity or an unexpected chapter in our life story.

Change is inevitable.  Just as the seasons change, we experience new seasons of our lives.  God speaks to this change in Ecclesiastes 3, For everything, there is a season. A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to cry and a time to laugh – A time to grieve and a time to dance.

So why do we resist change so much when it is a normal part of our lives?  Why do we resist the unknown when we are loved by a known and faithful God?  Fear causes us to resist change –  the fear of the known or unknown.

I know personally, that we must make a conscious choice, a decision not to be afraid of change and, ultimately the feelings will follow.  Change leads to new beginnings.  Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2), and His plan for our lives reflects His faithfulness and love for us. There is no fear in God’s love (1John 4:18), and nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38).

Change is inevitable, but Courage is not. Embracing change takes courage – the courage that God imparts to us. God commanded Joshua to be strong and courageous. That’s right – God didn’t suggest to Joshua to be courageous, He commanded him to be courageous.

Utilizing the courage that only God can give us requires that we make intentional decisions every day – both large and small.   Often times, God requires us to be faithful in the small things, before He will open the door & entrust us with the larger opportunities He has for us.

As believers in Jesus Christ, we are instructed to a known God with our unknown future – knowing that all things work together.  And God commands each of us to be courageous, embrace change and follow His lead.  Once we embrace change, we often experience freedom in the very thing we feared!

He is a good, good Father whose heart for us is strong and resolute and His plan for us is good.

Providentially, God can turn our greatest change into our greatest gain – for our good and for His Glory.