Are You Ready for Change?

Someone posted on Facebook a cute saying about next year being the beginning of a new book.

"Go out there and write a bestseller!"

My response was a bit cynical: "I think I'd rather have a boring year that doesn't make the bestseller list for drama, suspense, scandal and plot twists. That probably ain't gonna happen either!"

It is the end of a year and the beginning of a new year.

Or the beginning of a new day. Or a new hour. Or a new minute.

And one thing that is consistent is change.

Health. Wealth. Security. Death. Job. Children. Church. Home. Weather. Friends.

Everything and everyone around us is going to change.

Life will be different at the end of 2015. Or the end of this week. Or the end of this day.

Sometimes the amount of change that we go through in a certain period is overwhelming. And when we can't deal with change, then we have problems.

In the midst of all the change, there is a constant.

"For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed" (Malachi 3:6).

God does not change.

What a blessing that is!

In the context of Malachi, God is reminding Israel that His immutability, the fact that He doesn't change, is to give them comfort.

He made a promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the patriarchs of Israel. And He isn't going to change His mind.

Israel had been continually rebellious to God and His plan. But God didn't change.

His standards remain the same.

His promises remain the same.

His character remains the same.

We will face change. We will change.

Our entire world could be turned upside down very easily.

But God will never change.

All I Have to Be

I've been cleaning and baking this evening listening to the Ball Brothers on Spotify. About every song I hear is my new favorite.

This one: All I Have to Be by the Ball Brothers, is a great reminder of setting priorities. Whether we're trying to decide what to do on a particular day, or trying to decide a major for college studies, we need to be reminded that those tasks and goals are simply side issues.

They are not irrelevant.

There are biblical commands and principles to guide us in our decisions - the big ones and the little ones.

But all we have to do is wrapped up in Christ.

"All I have to be is Yours."

The demands on us each day are great. We have appointments to keep. We have bills to pay - so we go to work.

The kids need us. The church needs us. The parents need us. The boss needs us. The customer needs us.

And these are not bad things.

But all those things can crowd out all that we need to be: "All I have to be is Yours."

What does that mean?

First, it speaks of a relationship. We are His. He has purchased us with the blood of His Son (1 Peter 1:18-19). He is our Father; we are His children.

Second, it speaks of activity. As we go about the tasks each day, we need to remember that we are ambassadors (2 Cor 5:20). Our words and actions should be drawing attention to Him, not to ourselves.

So, as you look at the list of tasks to accomplish in the next days, remember, "All you have to be is His."

His child.

His instrument.

Everything else on your to-do list is a reflection of your position and your responsibility in Christ.

For God's Sake!

It seems like this is a line from a British drama.

And if a lot of us had said this as children, our mom's would have washed our mouths out with soap.

But, it's actually quite a biblical phrase. One that is used often. Often in the Psalms. Often in prayers. 

It's a phrase that should be in our vocabulary and in our thoughts.

The prophet Daniel read the book of Jeremiah and discovered that the Babylonian captivity would last seventy years. Daniel's response was to break out in a prayer of national confession.

His prayer ended with a request.

It was not, "Lord, we have suffered enough. Please restore us to Jerusalem."

Or, "Lord, we can't take this anymore. Please show us your mercy and relieve the pressure."

Or, "Lord, we have humbled ourselves. Now reward us with prosperity."

Listen to this:

"Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name" (v 17-19).

Daniel's plea was for restoration. But not to make his life better.

His plea was for restoration for God's sake.

The purpose of his prayer was that God's name would be made glorious.

That God's promises would be fulfilled.

That God's city would be rebuilt.

That God's temple would be restored.

That God's people would be returned.

What does your prayer life look like?

Are you praying for your sake?

Or maybe for the sake of someone else?

Or are you praying for God's sake?