Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Journeys of Change



“The heart cannot rejoice in what the mind rejects.”



Sometimes in our lives we remain constant, scheduled, predictable, and unchanging. Those are usually the times we find ourselves comfortable, at least for awhile, and we are relaxed. When we look back over the years we can usually see these times as the “lazy days of summer” in life. These times usually fall just before an impacting change occurs in our lives.

When the change comes, it is sometimes something out of our control. Something related to a phase of our life. Maybe it’s a coming of age, an empty nest, an illness, a loss of employment or the loss of a family member. Other times, we find God bringing change into our lives through promptings of His spirit. Whispers of new directions begin to adjust our path. Maybe the lives of our friends push us to a new way of thinking. When these changes begin, we can embrace them, rebel against them or completely reject them.

Our family seems to be hitting one of those seasons of change. It is amazing to watch how God directs us through small decisions that seem to be unrelated. Yet as we look back we begin to see how they all affect one another and go together.

We are making the decision to live a little healthier. As we make life style changes (not big ones mind you, just small ones-slowly) we feel prompted to use those changes as catalysts to other things. Making this small change has given us a new direction in teaching our children about the impoverished of the world. This in turn has brought us to a place of embracing a compassionate ministry that God has been whispering in our ear for more than 2 years. Embracing this ministry will allow God to use our family to impact a world we will probably never see.

Change isn’t easy. However, when we choose to accept a new direction we can find joy and excitement in the journey.