Embracing Change - Monday September 01, 2014
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: Ecclesiastes 3:1 NIV
September is a time of new beginnings. It is back to school, back to college, back to routines. With beginnings come transitions that can either fill us with hope or with uncertainty. John Piper is quoted as saying that endings are a time for thanksgiving; beginnings are a time for faith. I have found it much easier to navigate through transitions if I am anchored in the truth of God's Word instead of wondering and worrying about what is ahead.
One verse that has been my daily prayer recently is Psalm 143:8 (NLT): "Show me where to walk, for I give myself to you." This is such a beautiful picture of trust and giving up control. One of the hardest things for me is not knowing what is next or how things will work out. If I simply commit myself to doing God's will and having faith in His plan, I can have peace and take life one day at a time.
Ecclesiastes 3 is a great chapter to look to in times of change. It reminds us that there is a time for everything: "a time to weep and a time to laugh" (verse 4 NIV); "a time to plant and a time to uproot" (verse 2 NIV); "a time to keep and a time to throw away" (verse 6 NIV). God ordains each one and gives us grace through them.
My life verse is Psalm 16:8 (GNT): "I am always aware of the Lord's presence. He is near, and nothing can shake me." Though change can be unsettling, if I am aware of the nearness of God it doesn't have to rock my world. Ask Him to find a verse that meets your need for the changes and challenges of today.
Submitted by:
Kelly Lewis
Grace Point Community Church
Lewis Center, Ohio
One-Year Reading Plan:
Job 40:1-42:17
2 Corinthians 5:11-21
Psalms 45:1-17
Proverbs 22:14
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SCRIPTURE REFERENCB-ES: Unless otherwise identified, Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible B) The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are from the Holy, Bible, New International Version, copyright B) 1973, 1978, 1984 by InternaB-tional Bible Society; (NKJV) are from New King James Version B) 1982 by Thomas Nelson; (NLT) are from the New Living Translation, B) 1996, Tyndale House Publishers; (ESV) are from English Standard VersionB., B) 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers; (TM) are from The Message B) 1993 by NavPress Publishers.