Pam and I are in Kansas City for a few days: she for work, me for moral support. Luckily my schedule permits me to tag along on most of her trips. She is a consultant for “The Integrity Resource Center”, headquartered in K.C., and it has turned into a beautiful working relationship. They love her; she loves them, and I’m happy that everyone loves everyone. But as good as her day went for her, mine truly sucked!!
My saga began at 0-dark 30 when I got up to start writing my blog, only to discover that the battery in my computer was shot. Even plugged in, it was dead. Since I already had three cups of coffee in me, going back to bed was out of the question. But eventually a store opened and I got a new battery, only to discover when I got back to the condo it would take about twelve hours to charge ‘er up! Next I went outside to pull the car into the garage, only to mistakenly push the “program” rather than the “send” button on the garage door opener. I erased the code. The rest of the morning was spent trying to reset the code…but to no avail. Consequently the car remained in the driveway outside the garage, which is against condo rules. Ugh!
But…I had appointments in the afternoon at the Conservatory of Music at UMKC to attend an orchestra and wind symphony rehearsal. So off I went, thankful to be putting the morning behind me. But once I got to campus the parking situation was totally NUTS. Consequently it took me 40 minutes to park. I ended up in a parking garage that had metered parking on the top level, but by this time I’m already fifteen minutes late for the rehearsal, only to discover when I got to the ticket machine, it did not take credit cards, nor did it give change. It had to be the EXACT amount. No way was that going to happen, so I decided to chance it. So as you probably have suspected, when I got back to my car the meter patrol had just put a ticket on my window…and he wasn’t interested in my sad story! Needless to say, inside I was ready to POP!
The reason I’m telling you this is because there was a time in my life when any one of these incidents would have pushed me over the edge. I had absolutely no patience, and could become particularly belligerent and ugly in a matter of seconds. I can’t even begin to tell you the number of times my mouth was the mouthpiece of satan! I could not stand to be inconvenienced, nor did I like being held accountable for my actions.
But the good news is… that is not who I am today. And to be totally honest with you, I’m particularly fascinated with the change that has taken place in me. Consequently I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about “why” and “how” this happened. I was definitely a hot-head, a loud-mouth, and when you add to that my addiction to alcohol, you can definitely see the mixture for volatility.
But here is what I’ve discovered. The “why” is, I had enough. I was willing to surrender. The “how” is, I found Jesus Christ. Very quickly He became my “higher power” (step II), and I came to believe that the more I got out of the way and let Him live through me, the more successful was the attempt to change. I believed in the power of the Holy Spirit, and I submitted to his will. I abided in Him and He – true to his word – abided in me. My prayer life became more energized because I was seeing the truth of His Word being manifested in my life, and I wanted more, more, more.
We are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 to “pray unceasingly, and in all circumstances give thanks to the Lord, for this is his will for you.” James 1:5-7 tells us: “If you need wisdom – if you want to know what God wants you to do – ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave on the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.” I was more than willing to plug into the power of the Holy Spirit because I could see that I was beginning to conquer situations that used to baffle me. I was convinced I had found THE answer for overcoming my character defects.
Today I look for opportunities to share what I have experienced, and the opportunities are numerous. In fact, many times the opportunities come from people who knew me in the BC (before Christ) part of my life. They are fascinated and want to know “what happened.” This opens up the door for me to tell them the truth…that I had a radical encounter with Jesus Christ, and what he did for me, he is willing to do for anyone who is ready to embrace the process of change.
I particularly focus on the “relationship” part of changing, because I am used to skeptics responding with: “well, I know people who go to church but…” or “I go to church but…” As soon as I hear “but”, I am convinced I have the answer they have been seeking, but here-to-fore have been looking in all the wrong places.
I talk about the importance of coming to know Jesus Christ on a personal level, and I stress the importance of delving into the treasure trove of knowledge that is the Bible. This is indispensable in the process of change. I suggest they start reading in Ephesians, Chapter 1: 1-14 for background information; then to Romans 3:22-26 (the mini-Gospel) and 5:6-11 for the implementation of God’s plan; then to Galatians to read about the “human condition”, 5:16-23 and 6:7-8; then to Philippians 3:3-9 and 4:13 for the reward.
What I’ve discovered – and I’m sure to no one’s surprise – is the beacon that draws people to Christianity is forgiveness of sin and the promise of eternal life. No doubt that is great news, and it certainly settles once and for all the concern about our eternal life. But what about those of us who will continue to live for another 20, 30, 40, or even 50 years in this fallen world. Now that we are trying to become the person God created us to be, we have a target on our back. To stay the course is indeed a challenge! And as we’ve all experienced, satan is a formidable foe who never misses an opportunity to try to shipwreck our best effort as he tries to lure us back into our previous ways. He had us right in the palm of his hand, and he isn’t going to give us up without a fight. Trust me…it can get particularly ugly. I know that because I’ve been there, and I still struggle at times to stay afloat.
What seems to be a surprise to many people after they’ve accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, is they expect their life to be changed for the better. Ta Da-Ta Da…Newsflash! If you had relationship problems, financial problems, health problems, job problems before you accepted God’s Gift of Grace, you will still have those same problems the day after you made this monumental decision. But the good news is…the Holy Spirit is God’s gift to empower us to rise above our circumstances; to become the person He created us to be; to bring honor and glory to Him through our new decisions and behavior. It is by allowing the Holy Spirit to direct our life that becomes our new source of power and strength. But keep in mind, it is a process, and it requires growing in our wisdom and knowledge of God’s truth. It is this process that allows us to become his “masterpiece” as referenced in Ephesians 2:10: “For we are now God’s Masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”
That, my Friends, is how we change. It is not through of our effort, because mankind had from Creation to 2016 years ago to conquer the battle with SIN…and we failed miserably. In fact, Romans 5:6 reveals our pathetic state: “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time to die for us sinners.” This is a gift from a loving God who always planned – even before the world was created (Ephesians 1:4) – to send a Redeemer to do for us what we proved without a doubt we were incapable of doing for ourselves. That is why we can expect eternal life! Christ paid the price for our sins so we can come into the presence of God. It is the Holy Spirit that empowers us to march down the path of sanctification (becoming more Christ-like) in this life. And we are blessed to do that because we are in Christ.
That is the key to change…successful change…enduring change. And that power is available to anyone who is willing to accept God’s Gift of Grace.
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May God bless Ya…
Dan Presgrave (a.k.a. Pastor Dan)
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