The Power to Change - Week 4

 

Last week we talked about the power there is in one small holy habit to change our lives for the good.  The habit of praying three times a day, every day, helped Daniel remain close to God.  That habit gave him the ability to interpret the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar, who then decreed to all the people that there was only one God and it was the God of Israel.  The habit of prayer also gave Daniel the courage to trust God during a time of persecution and pain.  By adding one small holy habit to our lives, we can find the power to change.  It’s the spiritual what of our series.  

In this series we have talked about the spiritual why of change.  Why does God want us to change and why, deep down, do we want to change.  We talked about the spiritual who of change.  We do what we do because of who we think we are.  But who does God say we are and how does that vision shape how we see ourselves?  If we can change how we see ourselves and identify the ways God wants us to change, we can then find the holy habits, the spiritual what of change, that can help us transform our lives.  

Today let’s talk about the spiritual what NOT of change.  Based on who God says we are and who we want to be, what should we NOT be doing?  What habit do we need to break?   Is there one habit that we know isn’t good for us and is holding us back?  Is there one habit that is keeping us from God, from the life God wants for us, from the relationships that are important to us, and the vision and mission God has for us?  What is that one small thing we need to NOT do in order to transform our lives?  

Most people don’t set out to ruin their lives.  No one grows up hoping to file for bankruptcy because there is no other way out of debt.  No one sets out to become addicted to alcohol, pornography, or prescription drugs.  No one wants to find themselves in their third marriage because they are so critical and unforgiving of others that they can’t let go of the faults they see in those they love.   We don’t set out to ruin our lives and it doesn’t happen all at once.  It happens one bad decision, one wrong step, and one harmful habit at a time.   

King David didn’t set out to kill one of his best and most faithful soldiers, Uriah.  But the decision to have Uriah killed came after a decision David made to have an affair with Uriah’s wife.  Now David didn’t set out to have an affair with Bathsheba.  It wasn’t one of his life goals or part of God’s plan.  David wanted to be a man after God’s own heart and he wanted to honor God in all his ways.  David didn’t set out to have an affair, but he did after he made a bad decision by commanding Bathsheba to come to him. 

That bad decision came because David had seen Bathsheba bathing when he went out for a walk on the roof of the palace.  David didn’t set out to go watch Bathsheba take a bath, but he was home alone and there was no one around, so he went out for a walk.  Now the reason David was home alone because he had made a bad decision.  

In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem.  2 Samuel 11:1

It was the time of year when kings went off to war, but David decided to stay home.  He was going to remain where it was safe and comfortable and send his men out to fight for him. He was going to send out all the men, which meant he would have no one to spend time with, but it also meant that many of the women would be home and alone.  That was the first bad decision.

David’s downfall wasn’t one bad decision, but one bad decision after another.  He stayed home alone.  He got up in the evening and walked around the roof of the palace.  He saw Bathsheba taking a bath and instead of looking away or turning aside or going back inside, he sent for her.  As series of bad decisions led to an affair, a pregnancy and finally the decision David made to have Uriah killed.

David shows us that our lives aren’t ruined by one bad decision or one wrong choice, we are brought down by bad habits and one bad choice after another after another.  Bad habits are what often keep us from being the men and women God wants us to be and ruin our lives and relationships.  

We see this in the news almost every day.  No one sets out to ruin their lives through addictions, but the DUI led to the loss of a good reputation and job, maybe even the loss of a marriage and the death of a neighbor.  No one sets out to destroy their marriage through inappropriate online relationships or lose their home and life savings to online gambling, but it happens when we are bored and lonely and jump online to find some comfort.  One harmful habit and one bad decision at a time can destroy our lives, but it doesn’t have to be this way.  There is power to change. 

James, the brother of Jesus said, Get rid of every filthy habit and all wicked conduct. Submit to God and accept the word that he plants in your hearts, which is able to save you. James 1:21 GNT

God tells us to get rid of bad habit.  He doesn’t say entertain the habit or justify it and tell yourself it’s not that bad.  We aren’t to tell ourselves that we aren’t hurting anyone so it’s all ok, or that this is just the way we are and we are never going to change.  It says we are to get rid of it.  If God says, get rid of it, then God will give us the power to do it.  If you hear nothing else today, hear this, you are stronger than unhealthy habits and God does give us the power to get rid of them.  

The first step in getting rid of any unhealthy habit is to define it.  You can’t defeat what you can’t define.  If we can define the harmful habit, maybe even write it down where we can see it and confront it, then maybe we can begin to see that God is more powerful than this behavior.  Once we define it, we can then submit it and ourselves before God.  Maybe we need to ask for forgiveness and then the strength and power to overcome.  

For many of us, the bad habit we might want to overcome has to do with our diet.  We know our diets are filled with things that are not healthy for us and we want to give up the sweets and the carbs and the fast food, but we just haven’t been able to do it.  If this is something that needs to change in your life, define it.  

Maybe the bad habit isn’t our diet but our digital footprint.  Maybe we know that we spend too much time online checking social media and surfing the web and playing mindless games, but we just can’t stop.  I read this week that the average person spends 4 hours a day on their phone.  I looked at the screen time setting on my phone and felt really good because it said my average was just over an hour a day, but then I remembered that when I’m home I often use my iPad to play games, watch videos, check news, weather, sports and social media.  I went to see how much time I spent on my iPad and found the screen time setting wasn’t on.  I turned it on so I can monitor how much time I spend looking at a screen.  

If you aren’t sure your online activity is something that needs to change, consider this.  If the average person spends 4 hours a day on their phone, that would be 1,460 hours a year, or 14,600 hours in 10 years.  That would be like spending a solid year and a half, day and night, just staring at a screen.  If you account for 8 hours of sleep each day, 14,600 hours would be the equivalent of spending more than 2 years staying at a screen.  Is this a harmful habit that is undermining your faith or destroying your relationships? 

 

Our diet or digital footprint might be the bad habit we wrestle with, but for some it might be a persistent bad attitude. If you have already thought of 10 things you haven’t liked about worship this morning, then you might have a critical spirit that keeps you from experiencing consistent joy or peace.  Or gossip might be the habit you want to break.  The Bible talks about the negative impact of gossip over 50 times.  God says this is an important habit to break because gossip destroys the strength and health of the church.  

What are the harmful habits that you want to break?  What are the bad habits you have wrestled with and haven’t been able to overcome but you know God wants you to break so you can experience freedom and life?  Once you have defined the habit, the next step is to turn away.  

Solomon said,  Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evildoers.  Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way.   Proverbs 4:14-15

Solomon doesn’t just say, don’t go down that road and don’t walk in the way of evil, he tells us to… Avoid it.  Don’t go there.  Turn away.  Go another way.  

In other words, run.  Run away from evil.  Run from bad habits.  Turn away from those things that you know aren’t good for you and lead to unhealthy thoughts, words, and actions.  James tells us to resist the devil and he will flee from us, but we have to first resist.  Life would have been very different for King David if had run away that night on the palace roof.  But it’s not easy to resist unhealthy habits that have become deeply rooted in our lives.  

Studies have shown that there are 4 times when we are most susceptible to falling into bad habits and unhealthy patterns of behavior and it’s at these times that we need to stop and be careful.  These times are when we are  Hungry - Angry - Lonely - Tired

Notice what they spell.  HALT.  These are the times we need to halt, or stop, and be careful of what decisions we are making.  

You know how they tell you not to go to the grocery store when you are hungry?  It’s true.  If you are hungry, you will buy all the food you want to eat and come home with bags full of comfort foods you love but might not be healthy.  If you want to eat better, go to the store when you are full, have a list, and are focused on the right things.

When we are angry it’s easy to be critical of everyone around us and everything we see.  When we are angry, or know that our patience is thin, we need to be careful of what we say and who we talk to so that we don’t end up saying things we will regret later on.  

Loneliness is often what leads people to online relationships that are unhealthy and destructive.  When people feel lonely in their marriage, hooking up with an old high school friend on facebook might seem harmless, but it might be a harmful habit to start. 

In general, being tired means we are weak and vulnerable in all kinds of ways that can lead us to make decisions where there is a big payoff now but will lead to pain and disruption later on.  Maybe King David was feeling tired, so he decided to stay home when his men went to war, and maybe he was feeling lonely so decided to take a walk.  We have to be aware of these times when we might be more vulnerable to making bad decisions.  

To overcome bad habits we need to define it, turn from it,  and if needed interrupt the action.  If we don’t want to spend 4 hours a day on our phones, we need to literally turn them off and put them away.  My iPad is often by my bed at night which means I can easily grab it in the morning and spend time looking at news, sports, weather, social media, and email.  Before I’m even out of bed or in God’s word, I have allowed the world to set the tone of my day.  When I have worked to break this habit, I have put my iPad in the other room so I can’t easily get it.  

If we want to start a new habit, we make it obvious and easy.  If we want to break a bad habit, we have to make it difficult and uncomfortable.  If you don’t want to eat ice cream at night or snack on chips before bed, don’t buy them.  If you don’t want to hit the snooze button every morning, move your alarm to the other side of the room.  If you don’t want to hit one click shopping on amazon, don’t let it hold your credit card number. Do what you need to do to interrupt the action.   

As we talk about breaking bad habits, I do want to acknowledge that many people battle more than bad habits.  Some people wrestle with strong addictions and what’s needed here is professional help and even rehabilitation.  There is nothing weak about getting help when battling an addiction.  It takes real courage and strength to face the habits and actions that work to destroy us and there is nothing better than finding support and power to get healthy.  

If you are battling an addiction and want help, all of our pastors are here for you.  Jeff Pilger, our children and youth director, also has experience in assisting people in getting the help they need.  There are times when more direct intervention is needed to overcome addictions and help is here for you. 

Whether it is a harmful habit or a real addiction, if you don’t like the direction your life is going, there is power to change.  Jesus came because there are times we all head in the wrong direction and make bad choices.  But forgiveness is real and change is possible through the power of the Holy Spirit.  God doesn’t give up on any of us just because we make a bad decision or have some harmful habits.  God offers forgiveness and grace and the power to change.  

God didn’t give up on David.  After David acknowledged his wrong steps, God forgave him and helped him find new life. When we acknowledge our sin, define the hurtful habit, and ask for the strength to turn from evil and run toward God, there is power to change.  This is how things ended with David.  He wrote:  

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love;

according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.

Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.  Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.  Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.  Psalm 51:1-2, 10-12

May this be our prayer as we seek God’s power to change.  

Next Steps

The Power to Change - Week 4

Do you like the direction your habits are taking you?

What are some of the habits you would like to change?  

King David’s failure took place one bad decision and one wrong step at a time.  Read 2 Samuel 11.

● Identify the bad decisions and wrong steps that led to King David’s sins.  

● What could King David have differently at each wrong step he took?  

Read James 1:21.  

Steps to stop a bad habit:

1. Define it.  Write down the bad habit you want to change so you can clearly see it.  Confess it to God and be reminded that God’s power is greater than the habit.

2. Turn from it.  Read Proverbs 4:14-15.  Do all you can to turn and run from bad habits.

3. H.A.L.T.  Know when you are hungry, angry, lonely and tired as these are the situations where we are vulnerable and often make poor decisions and fall back on bad habits.

4. Interrupt the Action. Make bad habits difficult and uncomfortable to continue.  

Read Proverbs 13:20. Who is someone wise you can spend time with to help stop bad habits and start good ones?

Father, we know You give us the power to break the bad habits that hold us back. Please show us a bad habit You want us to break and give us the strength to make the needed changes in our lives. We ask for the power to change in the name of Jesus. Amen. 

The Power to Change - week 3

 

We are in a series called The Power to Change and I’m wondering how many of you have been hoping to experience some kind of change this year?  Are you hoping to get out of debt?  Hoping to improve your health or improve your relationships?  Anyone hoping to exercise more and get into shape?  Are you hoping for some kind of change?  If you are hoping for change, I have some bad news for you.  Hope is not enough.  

Hope is not enough.  We can hope all we want, but hope won’t change our life.  Believe me, hoping to eat healthier has never helped me eat better.  Hoping to get our finances in order won’t control our spending or increase my giving and generosity.  Hoping for a better relationship with God doesn't get me out of bed earlier in the morning to spend time reading the Bible.  Hope is a start.  Hope is important and good and right but hope alone is not enough.  

In this series we have learned that behavior modification won’t bring about lasting change, we need spiritual transformation. We need to dig deep and ask some spiritual why questions.  Why do we really want to change?  Why might God want us to change?  Last week, Pastor David talked about the need for us to see ourselves differently.  We need to ask ourselves some spiritual who questions?  Who does God want us to be?  Who do we want to be?  Do we see ourselves as the kind of person who can do more and be more than we think is possible because of the power God gives us?  Today we are going to begin to talk about the spiritual how.  How do we begin to actually change our lives? 

In all of our lives there is something very small that can turn our hope into change.  If we can harness the power of this one thing, our lives will change for the good.  To help us understand this one small thing, let me ask you, what did you do Friday morning when you first woke up?  Most of us know exactly what we did because we did the same thing on Thursday and Wednesday.  What was the first thing you did when you woke up?  We all know what Pastor David did.  He hit the snooze button a few times.  That’s the kind of person he is, but what did you do?  

All of us have some version of doing the same thing every morning.  If you are a man over a certain age, the first thing you probably do is make a trip to the bathroom.  Then in some order we shower, get dressed, make the bed, make some coffee, check our email, and turn on AccuWeather to see what Bernie Rayno says about the weather for the day.  Maybe then we fix breakfast for ourselves, or our kids, take some time to check the news, facebook, and then hopefully read the Bible, read a devotional on our Bible app, say a prayer, brush our teeth and go to work.  We all have a certain routine filled with small habits.  

Every morning my grandmother read the obituaries.  Before she would even do the crossword puzzle, she would read the obituaries.  She would tell us that if her name wasn’t in the paper, she could start her day.  It’s what she did every day. One day she really struggled because her name was in the paper.  She was reading the obituaries and there it was, Catherine Russell.  She told us that she didn’t know what to do or if she could continue on with her day because her name was there, but when she read the obituary and realized that it wasn’t her, she could begin her day.  

While the order we do things might change from day to day, and time might limit some of what we do, most of us have some kind of morning routine filled with small habits.  These habits have become part of our lives, and it is small habits like these that can become powerful agents of change.  For a great take on the power of small habits, I encourage you to listen to the commencement speech given by Navy Admiral William McRaven in 2017 titled, If You Want To Change The World, Make Your Bed!  Here is part of what he said:, 

If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.  If you make your bed every morning you will have accomplished the first task of the day. It will give you a small sense of pride, and it will encourage you to do another task and another and another. By the end of the day, that one task completed will have turned into many tasks completed. Making your bed will also reinforce the fact that little things in life matter.

Little things in life matter.  One small habit can change everything.  Now I want to be clear and say that when we talk about habits that can change our lives, I am not talking about behavior modification. We learned a few weeks ago that just changing our behavior won’t bring about spiritual transformation, but once we tap into the power of God’s Holy Spirit and begin to see ourselves the way God sees us, then small holy habits can begin to bring about transformation.  We don’t start by changing our habits, we start by being clear about why we want to change and seeing us the way God sees us, but then changing our habits can turn our hope to change into actual change.  

There is a story in the Old Testament that shows us how one small habit helped change an entire nation.  In 587 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon defeated Israel and took most of the people into captivity.  The very promising young men of Israel were all taken to the King’s palace to be indoctrinated into the culture of the Babylonians.  The goal was to make these men into strong leaders for Babylon.  One very promising young man was Daniel.  

Daniel was able to interpret dreams and when no one could interpret a dream that troubled Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel was sent for and he gave the king its meaning. Nebuchadnezzar was so pleased with Daniel that he said that there was only one God in all the land and it was the God of Israel.  King Nebuchadnezzar said, surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings.     

How did this amazing event ever take place?  How did Daniel get to the place where he was close enough to the King to tell him the meaning of his dream?  What we learn about Daniel is that it all started with one small holy habit.  After Nebuchadnezzar died, another king came to power named Darius.  Daniel continued to rise in power and leadership and all the Babylonian leaders were jealous of Daniel so they tried to discredit him.  Because they couldn’t find any flaw in his character or wisdom, they knew they had to somehow undermine his faith.  

Finally these men said, “We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God.”  Daniel 6:5

So the Babylonian leaders went to Darius and said he should set a decree that all the people could only pray to him and if anyone prayed to someone other than him, they would be thrown to the lions.  This pleased Darius, so he set the decree and no one could pray to anyone other than the King.  But Daniel had always been faithful to the God of Israel.  Here’s what Daniel did.    

Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.  Daniel 6:10

In the face of persecution and certain death, Daniel didn’t waver or hesitate to do what he had always done, which was to bow down to God and pray.  Daniel had always prayed to God three times a day.  Daniel always prayed facing Jerusalem to honor God and he always prayed on his knees to humble himself before God.  This was a holy habit that Daniel had been doing for years.  This life of prayer is how Daniel rose to power in the first place and it was his life of prayer that gave him the ability to interpret dreams.  This one holy habit of prayer is what gave Daniel the courage to remain faithful, even in the face of the lions, and help the king of Babylon proclaim that the God of Israel was the God of gods and the Lord of kings.  

One holy habit changed everything.  So what is one holy habit you can adopt to become the person God says you are?  God told Daniel that he was a man who would always remain faithful, and the habit of prayer helped Daniel be that man.  

 

If God says you are a parent who passes your faith to your children, one small habit you might want to embrace is to pray with your children before they go to bed, or before they go to school. 

If God says you are the kind of person who is grateful in all situations and sees the good in all people, then one small habit you might want to embrace is to send out thank you notes each week.  

If you want to be a more spiritual person who is able to more clearly hear the voice of God, one small habit you might add to your life would be to read the Bible in the morning before you turn on the TV or check in on social media.  

If you want to be closer to God and feel like you are part of a larger community that has power and can change our world, one small habit might be to commit to being in worship every Sunday, and if you are able to be there in person, be there in person.  

Let me be clear, I am very grateful for our ability to worship together online.  Our online presence gives many people who can’t be with us in person the opportunity to worship and be present with us.  When people are sick or move away, we have the opportunity to stay connected.  There are many wonderful and important things about our online worship, but if you are able to join us in person, I invite you to do so.  Being together in worship is important.  

Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.  Hebrews 10:24-25

There is encouragement, love, and yes, power that we can tap into when we worship together in person.  While it is important to gather so we can experience that love and grace and power, it is also important for us to meet together so we can be the one offering that love and grace and power.  One of the important parts about being present in worship is that God might want to use you to encourage and spur others on.  We can’t do that when we are online and sitting at home.  

Worship isn’t just coming together to get strength and power from God and others, it is also about coming together to serve and love and strengthen others.  One small holy habit to strengthen your faith this year might be to simply return to in-person worship.  We are here and we would love to have you join us.  

The power to change your life is often found in one small holy habit.  If you are hoping for change but the change you want seems too big, don’t be afraid to start small.  Start with one small holy habit.  And if you want to start a new habit, here are two things that research shows can help you.

1. Make it obvious.  

If you want to read your Bible every day, put your Bible on the table where you will see it every day.  If you have to go find it all the time, chances are something else will get in the way.  You know the old saying, out of sight, out of mind.  Keep it visible and obvious.

We do this with medication and vitamins. If you want to remember to take a vitamin every day, don’t put the bottle back on the shelf, leave it out where you will see it.  Put your pills in a weekly case where you will be reminded to take them every day.  

If you want to pray before you start your day, put a notification on your phone that goes off at the same time, and no matter where you are or what you are doing, stop and take a few moments to ask God to help you through your day.  Even if you are driving you can ask God to guide you through the day, just don’t close your eyes.  

2. Make it easy.

James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits, talks about a 2 minute rule.  When you start a new habit, make it something you can do in 2 minutes.  If you want to make prayer a part of your life, don’t start with 20 minutes of prayer, start with 2 minutes, everyday, and go from there.  If you want to pray together as a family, start with just a few minutes a day. 

 If you want to practice gratitude and send out notes, make them short and sweet.  Keep the box of cards on your desk and take just 2 minutes to let someone know you appreciate them.  

I always liked the idea of journaling but felt like I had to write paragraphs every day.  If you want to journal, write just a sentence or two.  Make it easy.  Those simple first steps will lead you to longer and more involved habits as you keep going.  

Too often we think that something short and small might not be worth it, but it is.  Those small holy habits can help us tap into the power of God that can change our lives, our families, and even our futures.  In his letter to Timothy, the Apostle Paul said, 

Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.

1 Timothy 4:8 (NLT)

Small changes can change our lives and our destinies. Don't be afraid to start small.  When Israel started to rebuild the Temple after King Nebuchadnezzar tore it down, the work was going very slowly, but the prophet Zechariah encouraged the people with these words.  

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.  Zechariah 4:10 (NLT)

What one small holy habit can you add to your life so that in time you will become the person God created you to be?  What one small holy habit can help you tap into the power God gives us to change?  Find that one small holy habit and start doing it today and allow God to give you the power to change.  

 

Next Steps

The Power to Change - Week 3

Holy Habits

Reflect on the spiritual whys of change.  

● What are the spiritual reasons you want to change?

Reflect on the spiritual who.  

● Who does God want you to become?  

● Who do you want to become? 

Now focus on the spiritual how.  

● What are some of your current habits? 

● In what ways do these habits honor God? 

● How could you use these habits to start a new one?

Read Daniel 6  (Look specifically at verse 10)

● What holy habit did Daniel practice?

● How had this habit helped Daniel in all of the difficult situations he faced?

● How did this one habit change the Kings of Babylon and even the people of Babylon?

One holy habit can change everything.

What one holy habit do you need to start this week in order to become the person God created you to be?

● Find ways to make this habit OBVIOUS.  

● Find ways to make this habit EASY.

○ Can you start this habit in just 2 minutes a day and then build from there?  

God, because we have a relationship with You, we’re able to experience real change. Help us identify a habit in our lives that You’re calling us to start. Then, show us how we can start practicing that habit today and all this week. 

We ask this in Jesus’ name.  Amen

The Power to Change - week 1

 

How many of you made a New Year’s resolution?   

Did anyone make a plan to eat healthier?  Exercise more?  Read the Bible in a year?  Spend less money and more time with kids and family?  If you made a resolution, how are you doing?  I know, it’s just been a week, but according to a study of 40 million people, most people have failed in their New Year resolutions and given up by the second Friday of January.  If you haven’t given up yet, good for you, but many of you will by the end of the week.  

How many of you set goals last year to get into shape and out of debt and yet you still weigh more than you want and you spent more than you planned in 2023?  How many of you set a goal to read the Bible in a year and you still have that goal?  Too many of us make plans to change but are never able to follow through and so year after year nothing changes and we just feel stuck.  We want to improve our lives but we never seem able to achieve the change we want.  

If you are tired of feeling stuck and longing for some real change, you are not alone.  In fact you are in some very good company and I don’t mean those around you.  There is someone else who understands our struggle and he is the one who wrote most of the New Testament, the Apostle Paul.  Paul went through a dramatic change in his life when he accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior, and he was one of the most faithful and courageous people for Jesus that the world has ever known, but he also felt stuck when it was time to make a change. In his letter to the Romans, Paul said

I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate.  I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.  Oh, what a miserable person I am!  

Romans 7:15, 19, 24a (New Living Translation)

Of all the passages of scripture, this one is the most real and raw for me.  This is how I feel in so many areas of my life.  I know how I want to live and the disciplines I want to have, and I know all the ways I want and need to change, and I try to change, but the good I want to do I don’t always do, and the wrong and the evil that I don’t want to do I too often end up doing, and I feel miserable.  Year after year I feel miserable because I make the same resolutions, set the same goals, and give up after failing in the first 2 weeks of January.  

There is a reason we go through this cycle over and over again, it’s because we are trying to change the wrong way.  One of the foundations of this message series is what real change is and isn’t. 

Real change is NOT behavior modification.  

Real change IS spiritual transformation.  

Real change isn’t behavior modification.  It’s not just changing the outside of our lives but asking God to change us from the inside out.  Real change has to be spiritual, changing who we are, or who we think we are, and living from the inside out.  Paul understood this.  As long as he was trying to change his behavior on his own he ended up failing and miserable.  What changed him, what freed him so that he could live life the way he wanted to live it and the way God wanted him to live it, was the power of Jesus Christ.  Paul said,

Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.  Romans 7:24-25a (NLT)

Paul knew that when it came to real change in his life, he had to lean into and draw on the power and strength of Jesus Christ.  

As a Christian, when it comes to thinking about change and how God is involved in helping us change, there are three mindsets we tend to see.  Two are wrong, but one is right.

The first mindset is:  God THEN me. 

With this mindset, we see how God begins a process of change by drawing us to Himself.  We come to terms with the reality of our sin, we accept God’s forgiveness, and we know that Jesus saves us.  As we walk with Jesus, we begin to see the kind of life God wants us to live and we think we are supposed to go out and just do it.  Do all you can to be like Jesus.  With this mindset we often think, if it’s going to be, then it’s up to me.  We are the ones who have to make the change.  We have to think better, act better, speak better, love better and live better.  It’s all up to us. 

This mindset usually ends in failure because we don’t have what it takes to live the life God sets out for us.  On our own we will try, but fail.  On our own we end up in a constant cycle of trying and failing. We can’t do it, only God can do it, which leads to the second mindset:  God NOT me.

With this mindset we tell ourselves that it is God’s job to change our lives. Because we can’t do it, we’ve tried and failed, it must be God’s job.  I can’t do it so God has to do it for me.  With this mindset we are expecting God to do the difficult things that we don’t want to do, or we end up asking God to clean up the messes we have created.  For example, with this mindset, we don’t try to control or limit our spending, we ask God to help us pick the right powerball numbers so we can win the jackpot and get out of debt. 

The problem with this mindset is that it absolves us of any personal responsibility.  We just expect God to make all the changes and for God to do all the work.  While God longs to change us and at times He steps in to make dramatic changes in our lives, this is not the way real change will be experienced in our lives.  God doesn’t exist to clean up our messes and do all the work for us, God wants a relationship with us, which leads us to the third and right mindset:

God THROUGH me.  

This is what spiritual transformation looks like.  It looks like God’s power working in us and with us and through us to bring about real and Godly change in our lives.  This is the mindset Paul gives us when he says, 

For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 1 Corinthians 15:9-10

Paul was very clear about the kind of person he was and that the only reason he had changed was because of the grace of God.  The grace of God changed Paul dramatically and it was that grace that continued to change Paul's life. But Paul went on to say, while God’s grace was at work in Him, he also worked hard.  He worked harder than all of the apostles in serving Jesus, and he did.   

Paul traveled more to share the gospel, he established more churches, and he was persecuted more than the other apostles.  Paul faced stonings, shipwrecks, snake bites and shackles because of his hard work for the gospel.  Paul did more work for the gospel than maybe any other single person other than Jesus, but he knew that his hard work wasn’t the full reason for the change and growth in his life because he goes back and says that all his work was only effective because of the grace of God that worked through him as he was working.  

There is a balance and understanding Paul has that he doesn’t work without God and that God wants to help him and equip him to work as well.  There is a partnership that takes place as we allow the Holy Spirit to bring about transformation in our lives.  God works through us to strengthen us so that we can work for and with God.  This is spiritual transformation and not just behavior modification.  This is where there is real power to change.  

This all sounds good, but how do we begin to put this into practice?  Well, for spiritual transformation to take place it has to be spiritual.  Profound, isn’t it?  But it’s true.  Spiritual transformation has to be powered by the Holy Spirit and it requires us to ask spiritual questions about who we are and how we live and why and where change is needed.    

Behind every motivation to change there is a why and a how.  If we want to get in shape this year, why?  Is it because we want to look good, or get ready for the beach or maybe the big high school reunion coming up this year.  Is it because our doctor told us we should?  Is it to lower our health care premiums?  Why are we motivated to make the change and then how will we do it?  How will we get in shape?  We will follow the latest diet; keto, clean eating, dry January or intermittent fasting?  

All of these whys and hows are fine, but they don’t help us tap into spiritual transformation because they aren’t asking deeper spiritual questions.  Is there a deeper spiritual reason why we need to think about getting into shape and improving our health?  A spiritual reason we might want to get into shape is because we were created by God and our bodies are the temple of the Spirit so we should want to take good care of what God has given us.  Tapping into the spiritual why behind our need or desire for change can help us think about transformation and not just modification.  And how will we make this happen?  Don’t just think outwardly but inwardly.  What is the power of God that we can draw from as we try and make changes in our lives?  

Another resolution people make is to spend less time online.  That’s a great goal.  When we look at our devices and see how much time we really spend connected online, we might begin to see the need for a change.  But can we identify a deeper reason to change, a more spiritual reason why we should spend less time online.   

A spiritual reason for spending less time online could be that if part of our purpose as children of God is to love God and love others, it’s hard to do that effectively when we are spending 4 hours a day on social media.  Spending less time on social media gives us more time to love and serve God, as well as time to love and serve our family, friends, and community in ways that will be a blessing.  A spiritual why can help us focus on spiritual transformation and not just behavior modification.

Another goal people set is to spend less money and get out of debt.  Again, that is a good and worthy goal, but what if we dig deeper and talk about the spiritual dynamics of money and spending.  Can we see that all of our money is a gift from God and that we are called to use it all wisely?  If we can get out of debt and spend less, then it frees up more resources for us to be a blessing in our church and community. There can be true spiritual transformation that takes place in our lives when we begin to see our spending, and saving, and giving as spiritual acts not just financial acts.  

When we look at where change is needed in our lives and begin to uncover the spiritual whys, it will help us see where spiritual transformation is needed.  Seeing where spiritual transformation is needed helps us ask for the spiritual power needed for change.  How we tap into that spiritual power to find transformation will be some of what we focus on in the weeks to come.  For now, let’s understand that the Bible is clear, God gives us power to change and strength to overcome.

1 John 4:4. You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.  The Holy Spirit is powerful and is present to work in us and help us overcome all things.  And the Apostle Paul said,

I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13 (NLT)  There is a power God makes available to us that can transform us and not just change our behavior.   

There is power from God that can help us experience real change.  We don’t do it on our own, it’s not God then me, and it’s not all God’s job to change our lives, it’s not God and not me.  Real change is God through me.  The power of God can bring spiritual transformation so we can become the people God created us to be and it is the Holy Spirit that equips us so that transformation is possible.  If you are tired of being stuck, stop trying to change your behavior and begin to ask the Holy Spirit why and how real spiritual transformation can take place in your life.  

Next Steps

The Power to Change - Week 1

Have you made any New Year’s resolutions this year?  

How are you doing with them?

Most people give up on their resolutions by January 14th.  When have you made resolutions and followed through on them?  What gave you the ability to make real change?  

Read Romans 7:15, 19, 24-25.

In what ways do you connect with Paul’s message?

How can your relationship with Jesus help bring about lasting change?  

Three ways we think about God helping us change.

● God THEN me.  God calls us to change and then we have to do it on our own.

● God NOT me.  We can’t bring about real change so we ask God to do it all.

● God THROUGH me.  We ask for God’s grace and power to help us change from the inside out.  

See 1 Corinthians 15:9-10

What are the problems with the first two ways we think about change? 

Asking for God’s grace and power to work through us requires us to uncover some spiritual whys and hows.  

Thinking about the change you want in your life:

● Why do you want to change?  

● Why might God want you to change?  

● What are the spiritual reasons why you need to change?  

Take time this week to uncover your spiritual whys and ask God to prepare you for the change His grace and power can bring to your life.