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 "No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man." - Heraclitus
INTRODUCTION
I have made it a habit to always call my kids each night when I am away ministering so they can say their prayers with me over the phone. Just a few months ago, when I prayed with my second youngest son Jacob, who just turned 13 (see http://www.firepowerint.com/family.htm), he would greet me with his normal high voice. But within a very short time, his voice began to change and is now taking on a deep bass tone. He changed! What happened? Nothing really, apart from the normal progress of life, and in Jacob’s case, the rapid advance of puberty with its exponential growth. My wife, Heather, is a little dismayed at not having any 'little' children anymore, but that's life and that's change.
ON THE MOVE!
The evidence for life is change. Movement characterizes life! Death is defined by rigidity. Nothing much changes in the cemetery! Here lies the paradox of the human soul. We love to see life develop and flourish, but our inner nature abhors the necessary change involved. Our natural bodies lose their flexibility as we grow older. Physical exercise and stretching can delay this process, but inevitably nature takes its course. We do however have the power to resist the hardening of our soul. The key to retaining mental and spiritual flexibility is to follow the exhortation of Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:22, "...I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some."
Alfred Nobel was a Swedish chemist who made his fortune by inventing dynamite and other explosives used for weapons. When his brother died, a newspaper accidentally printed Alfred's obituary instead. It described him as a man who had become rich by enabling people to kill each other in unprecedented numbers. Deeply shaken, he resolved to use his fortune to award accomplishments that benefited humanity, hence The Nobel Prize. Nobel had the rare opportunity towards the end of his life to re-evaluate it and live long enough to do something about it.
"KNOWLEDGE WILL INCREASE..."
Daniel 12:4 says one sign of the end of the age is that "…knowledge will increase." Knowledge in most fields today is doubling every five years. Any system or method that old should be brought in for an examination, overhaul, and possibly the last rites! If what you are doing is not working, don't look for somebody or something to blame, be willing to change! Refuse to let the word 'impossible' stop you. If those people who have changed the world had left every 'impossible' task undone, we would still be living in the dark ages.
About 100 years ago, German experts predicted that trains traveling at 25 mph would cause such severe nosebleeds that the passengers would suffocate going through tunnels. American experts added that we would need more asylums because people would go mad when they saw the first trains. When ships were first made of iron, experts insisted that they would never float and that the iron would wreak havoc with the compass readings. In 1797, New Jersey farmers denounced the first cast iron plough, insisting it would poison the land and stimulate weeds. These so-called experts were bound by the possible, but "...with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26).
TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE!
Bob Gass said recently: "More of us are persuaded into believing too little than believing too much! Vision is essential for survival. It's spawned by faith, sustained by hope, sparked by imagination, and strengthened by God's Word. It's greater than sight, deeper than a dream, broader than an idea. It encompasses things outside the realm of the predictable, the safe and the expected. No wonder we would perish without it!" A poet wrote, "Beware of those who stand aloof, and greet each venture with reproof. The world would stop if things were run by those who say, 'It can't be done.'" If God's given you a vision - pursue it with all you've got!
Romans 12:2 says; "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." The "perfect will of God" is that, as much as we can in this life, we become like Jesus. For most of us this will involve a lot of change.
"STANDING ON THE PROMISES"
We are often quick to acknowledge the need for change in others but our attitude really is, "I'm in favor for change -just don't change me!" Change is a challenge for most of us, but where there is no challenge there is no change, and where there is no change there is no life! I heard it said recently, "some people are kind, polite and sweet-spirited-until you try to sit in their seat at church." and "A lot of church members who are singing "Standing on the Promises" are just sitting on the premises." We are not here to just fill the time; we are here to make a difference. That means change.
WHEN YOU'RE THROUGH, YOU'RE THROUGH!
The key to longevity in life and ministry is to never stop asking, “Is there a better way?” When you stop asking this question, it won’t be long before you get in a rut, which I once heard described as a grave with the ends kicked out! Some people allow their minds to become like concrete, thoroughly mixed up and permanently set. Your principles should be set in concrete but not your methods, because when you're through changing, you're through!
Comedian Jerry Lewis joked that his best wedding gift was a film of the entire marriage ceremony. He said that when things got really bad at home, he'd go into a room, close the door, run the film backwards, and walk out a free man! Now, I doubt that you will be able to do that or even read your obituary in the newspaper. You can, however, make a choice to change. And when that change is successful, you'll look back and call it growth. If you're too rigid, you'll break. Learn to be more flexible!
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