So You Want To Change? Romans 2:29 - BLOGGING THE BIBLE- JournalHome.com

7/15/2010 - So You Want To Change? Romans 2:29

Posted in Unspecified

So You Want To change?

REFERENCE: Romans 2:29b And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by God´s Spirit.

Observation: Life and growth is all about changing. I have often been asked if I believe that people can change. I have to believe it. I preach for change every Sunday morning. I counsel for it all the time. I train leaders to change to be better at what God has called them to do. I insist that my younger children change and become more of what God wants them to be.

It is obvious that everyone needs to change; the question we must face is "how"? How do we change?
We can try to just be better. That is the equivalent of following the law. When Paul wrote this, his audience could reflect on thousands of years the Jewish people had tried to change in order to conform to the law - and failed. Trying harder simply does not work. The more we try, the more we think about our old ways and more we continue to live in them. As we all know, about 90% of all diets fail because change is hard!!

If trying harder rarely works, what does?

I agree with this scripture. The permanent change in my life has been by the work of God´s Spirit changing me; making me gentler, more loving, less angry, and less driven. I tried to change those things on my own and found myself unable but when I sought the Spirit to change me and let God make of me what He wanted, change came because He changed my heart and not just my actions.

Application/Confession: There are still areas in my life that I know God wants to change; some that I have worked at for a long time. I know that change will come not by trying to make myself but by throwing myself fully into the arms of the Spirit and allowing Him to make me what I should be.

PRAYER: Holy Spirit, change me. Don't let the wrong kind of desires gain control of me. Allow me to love more deeply and live in peaceful trust as you would want me to. Create in me a new heart that will always follow you. Spirit make me more like God Himself.

Share |