Why Trying Harder Won't Change Your Life
Change is necessary – it's part of life.
And most people would say they want change in their lives. They want circumstances to change, people to change, the world to change… And it seems it rarely occurs to us that we need to change.
The truth is, you probably have a lot more to do with change happening than you realize. You can't keep doing things the way you've always done them and hope or expect to get a different result.
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For years I tried to make things in my life change and didn't get anywhere. I would read the Bible and try. I would go to church and hear a message and try. Then I would tell God how hard I was trying, thinking maybe He'd feel sorry for me. And then I would go into my "drama" and say, "I just give up, God…"
The problem was, I was "trying" in my own strength, and I needed God's help. I needed to realize the truth about myself and my situation before I could get His help and see results.
How to Change Your Life
I've discovered that things in your life will change when you first change your mind. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world…but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God…" (The Amplified Bible).
So how do we renew our mind? With the Word of God! It is full of life and has power to change us. But we can't just read it and expect to be victorious Christians. We have to study it.
Think of it this way. You wouldn't go to a doctor who didn't study, would you? And no one expects to become a doctor without studying.
It's the same way for us. To really know the Word of God and be changed by the Truth, we have to study. And we have to be patient and persevere. I thank God for what I know, but it's taken more than thirty years for me to know it. And I'm still learning every single day.
What Are You Meditating On?
Part of studying is meditating – rolling something over and over in your mind or pondering it. If you know how to worry, you know how to meditate. It's usually not hard to meditate on a problem all day long, if you let yourself. I call this kind of thinking "stinkin' thinkin'."
We don't really know how messed up our thinking is until we study God's Word and realize what we should be thinking. The Word is like a mirror – it shows us the way we should be and the way we are. Until I looked in the Word, I thought everybody else was the problem, not me.
So, what's been on your mind lately? Stop and think about what you've been thinking about. If it's stinkin' thinkin', change it. The good news is, you can think whatever you want to think.
You can change. Everything is subject to change except God Himself.
But you have to stop wasting your time saying things like, "My life is never going to change. My finances are never going to change. My marriage and children will never change…"
Start saying what the Word says: "All things are possible with God. And I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength!" And think about good things so there's no room for bad things.
Do your own thinking – don't let the devil do it for you.
Finally, be daring in your prayers. Be bold and tell God, "I want You to change me. I want You to use me to change anything in the world that you want to use me for. I believe that You can change anything – me, my circumstances, my family, my marriage, my finances – there's nothing You can't change. I know change won't be easy, but I'm committed to be where You want me to be at all times. I won't sit here and give in to stinkin' thinkin' anymore."
