You Can Change, Really YOU Can

Today is the first Tuesday of an 11 week series on the book YOU CAN CHANGE by Tim Chester.  If you haven’t decided to join in the summer reading with us, I hope I can persuade you otherwise.  It’s a fairly easy read and the content is great.  (You can read a critic’s review of the book here. )This will be my second time reading the book-that’s how much I’ve enjoyed it.

This week, we’re starting with the Introduction.  The intro to this book gives a great opportunity to think about the possibilities of change.

3 Types of Christians that Need Change

• a new Christian that’s struggling to rid yourself of habitual habits and behavior
• an older Christian who has slowed down the pace of change.  Maybe you changed a lot in the beginning, but now it’s hard to mark changes in your life from year to year
• an older Christian who has started to fall into new sins, instead of moving forward-you seem to be moving backward in your faith walk

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:18

What Needs to Change?

The introduction points to individuals that are dealing with sinful behaviors and emotions at each of these levels.

• One individual is super moral but has NO JOY in her service to others
• One individual is involved in a sexual addiction that he can’t seem to shake
• One individual has a horrible temper
• One individual is addicted to the thrill of shopping

Some of these sins seem like a bigger deal than others.  But, the fact is that ALL of them are sins worthy of great punishment.  Each of these sins keeps the individual from enjoying Christ and loving God with all their being.

Sin is sin. And even seemingly small sins, like a controlling attitude or a short fuse…to less noticeable sins like disdain for our neighbors or feelings of envy. All of these trap us and keep us from enjoying Christ and worshiping Him as we were created to do.

Do You Believe You Can Still Change?

If you’re like me, you expected the ‘big sins’ to go away when you turned to Christ.  But, what about further down the road with Christ?  When you signed on to walk with Jesus, did you expect to experience continual change?

There are so many sinful behaviors that I just simply accept as my personality or tendency, something I just can’t help. There are things I do that just seem normal to me and I must admit I rarely have hope that these actions or emotions could actually change because of Christ’s power of salvation within me.

So, before we start chapter 1 next week.  Ask yourself a few questions about change in your walk with Christ.

Do I desire a life of continuous growth and change?

2What sins do I expect to be free of as a Christian?  What sins have I chosen to accept as normal and typical and not worth fighting?

3Does holiness sound boring or exciting to me?  Does holiness evoke an idea of joy or restriction in my mind?

4Have I asked God for HOPE that I can be constantly changing, always growing to better reflect the beauty and perfection of Jesus?

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