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The Unchangeable Change
12 Plays3 years ago
Vernon talks about our response to change by resting in the unchangeable change that has already changed us. Have a very Merry Christmas!
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Transcript
Holiday Greetings and Reflections
00:00:02
Speaker
This is your host, Vernon Terrell, with Grace Ministries International, and it's time for Walking Free.
00:00:21
Speaker
Well, I want to wish everybody a very Merry Christmas as 2022 is coming to an end. Can you believe it? We're close to a brand new year. But for this weekend, it is Christmas. So again, Merry Christmas. And I hope that you can really experience the Lord during this Christmas. And I know, um,
00:00:50
Speaker
having family and the pressure of presence.
Appreciation for Modern Conveniences
00:00:55
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Uh-oh, did I say that word? Have you finished your shopping? I know the pressure. Aren't you grateful for stores like Amazon, that online shopping experience, and for companies like UPS, our own postal service,
00:01:16
Speaker
as well as FedEx and the others. Aren't you grateful that they can deliver those last minute presents right to your door? And then for some of you, the very, very last minute, one of you who are going out to those stores on your lunch break or before work, or maybe you took some time off and kidding those presents. Ah, the pressure, getting it all done for Christmas.
COVID-19 and Virtual Counseling
00:01:44
Speaker
In the midst of all that craziness, do your best to pause and enjoy the Christ of Christmas. But have fun. Have fun with the presents. Have fun with the meals. That's always great. But hasn't it been, this year has been, there's always change, right? Every year. So much change happens.
00:02:13
Speaker
I know at Grace Ministries we have gone through so much change. And COVID over the last couple of years brought about so much change, like this virtual environment that we're in. Counseling virtually, having group sessions virtually, nothing will replace face-to-face, we know that.
00:02:39
Speaker
I love face-to-face. We love having face-to-face interactions, but wow. The virtual counseling has been incredible. Folks have really responded. They really like it. And there's some who just, they've got to have face-to-face. That's okay. But over, I'd say 80, 90% of folks have really responded to virtual counseling.
Critique of Online Mental Health Solutions
00:03:06
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And that's why I was so
00:03:09
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irritated when I saw this article in the Wall Street Journal and I even did a little short video on this article for our Continuing Education folks. We offer Continuing Ed for counselors and I shared this story from the Wall Street Journal. The title of it, you would think, oh, they're gonna have all these stats.
00:03:36
Speaker
Um, but they didn't, it was somewhat disingenuous, no shade on the wall street journal, but I don't think the title was very, uh, representative of the actual meat of the article. And the title says the failed promise of online mental health treatment. And when you read the article, what you really see is the failed promise of a poor counselor.
00:04:06
Speaker
or a poor virtual counselor in this particular context, and actually in the context of the article, a poor virtual Christian counselor, which really kind of makes me angry. And it was horrible on how they did this particular virtual session. I won't go into it. If you're not part of our continuing education, you can reach out to me and we can,
00:04:37
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Get you hooked up, it's free, something we offer for counselors and those in ministry. But anyways, that just got me thinking about this idea of change.
The Inevitability of Change
00:04:49
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And change, the saying is inevitable. I mean, the one thing that never changes is change, right? We're always gonna have change in our life. That's part of this experience we call life, this journey that we call life.
Biblical Perspectives on Change
00:05:06
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And I like, you know, the one change as believers that we all look to in 1 Corinthians 15, 51, Paul tells us, he goes, I tell you a mystery. And that's what this is. It's a mystery that we will not all sleep or die in this context, but we will all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet
00:05:35
Speaker
for the trumpet will sound. And by the way, the trumpet will sound. We don't know when it's gonna sound, but that trumpet will sound. By the looks of the global environment that we're in, it does seem like that trumpet is warming up, doesn't it?
00:06:00
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It's like when you're in, I was in marching band and we'd always be warming up before the halftime show in high school. And you hear the warming up and trumpets kind of playing and different instruments playing, get the warmup going. I think there's a lot of warmup going on because that trumpet will sound. And Paul says, and the dead will be raised imperishable. And we, who are alive,
00:06:30
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we will be changed. And sometimes we think, that's the change I want. It's that come Lord Jesus, come quickly. And it's funny, that was in 1 Corinthians 1551. And Paul kinda continued in his second letter that he wrote to the Corinthians in chapter five.
00:06:58
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He said, he talks about in verse one, we know that if the earthly tent, our bodies, the earthly tent, which is our house, is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed, in this house, in this life, in this body, we groan.
00:07:23
Speaker
And that's part of the change too. Sometimes life hits us hard or we just simply continue our journey and age. And if you in that boat like me, as we age and our bodies start to groan, we groan because of our bodies as they get older and that's normal and okay.
Faith and Life's Challenges
00:07:46
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But for, indeed, in this house we groan, St. Corinthians 5-2.
00:07:52
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longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven. And I love this idea of being clothed where we're fully clothed with our dwelling from heaven in as much as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. For indeed, while we are in this tent we groan, being burdened,
00:08:18
Speaker
And that's part of life too. Christianity is not the what some you might hear, it's the, you know, well, if you're really living right, God's blessing you and you basically have no trouble. That is a lie. In this life, we will have trouble. It's just part of life on this planet. And Paul said that
00:08:47
Speaker
You know, while we're in the tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed, but to be clothed so that what is mortal, and I love this phrase, will be swallowed up by life, because we have the life of Christ in us. We are spirit. That is who we are. With a soul living in this shell, we call a body, or as Bill Gillum would say,
00:09:14
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many, many years ago, our Earth suit. This is our Earth suit so we can live and operate on this planet, but we are spirit with a soul. And I love how this mortal will be swallowed up by life. It's like what is on the inside is swallowed up and we're getting a new body, the Lord says, in Revelation.
00:09:43
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Now, he who prepared us for this purpose, and Paul continues, by the way, about this new body also in his letters to the Corinthians, but in this particular chapter, he said that the mortal is swallowed up by life, and he who prepared us for this purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, as a pledge
00:10:12
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a down payment. Do you know the spirit of God, the omnipotent God who lives in us, is just a down payment. I mean, we have power in this life right now, just as Jesus walked and operated in the spirit. We too operate and can operate in the full power of the spirit in this life right now, and that's just a down payment. That's just a pledge.
00:10:44
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That's why he says in verse six, therefore, be always of good courage. Life is gonna hit you, it's gonna come, and there's also good times as well that are gonna come. Be of good courage, knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord in his actual presence that we can see because we walk by faith, not by sight.
Living by Faith and Assurance
00:11:15
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I want you to know that you know that you know, based on the hope of who he is, of who is in you, that you're not alone, that you have power, that you will be changed. But while we're in the body, we are absent, and we can walk by faith with the assurance
00:11:41
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that He is in us and His power is working through us and that we will see Him one day face to face. We walk by faith, not by sight. We are of good courage, I say. And prefer, rather, to be absent from the potty and to be at home with the Lord. But while we're here, it's our ambition to be pleasing, just pleasing to Him.
00:12:11
Speaker
And you know how you can be pleasing to him? Just to be you. The you that God made you to be. The you that made you to be as he continued in verse 17. Look, if you're in Christ, everyone who is in Christ is a new creature. You have been changed. Change is gonna hit us on this planet, but did you know you've experienced the most incredible change imaginable
00:12:41
Speaker
You have been transformed. That old you died in Christ. You were buried. You were raised up in him. Verse 17 says you're brand new. You're a new creature. You're a new creation. You're not the old you. Yes, you still make mistakes. Yes, you are deceived and try to get your needs met the old way that you used to get.
00:13:12
Speaker
but you are radically changed. And that's part of the journeys unwrapping that and realizing how changed you really are. And you can rest because the old things passed away behold new things have come. It's radical. And you have changed. Change is inevitable on this planet while we journey through.
00:13:42
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but you can rest in the fact that you have changed.
Positive Change Through Faith
00:13:47
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Or as Paul would say in the very beginning of almost every letter he writes to the saints in Atlanta, Georgia. Okay, he didn't say Atlanta, but he could have. Put the location where you are. He's writing to you, a saint, a holy one.
00:14:11
Speaker
That's you, you are changed. So I want you to realize in the midst of all the turmoil and the change that you have been changed, and that means that you can respond as one who has been changed. You can respond to all the change as one who has already been changed for the better, for the best, because you're brand new.
00:14:40
Speaker
And I want you to know that. I want you to rest in that. I want you to rest in the truth that you're loved. I want you to rest in the truth that you have victory right now. And I know, especially during these, uh, these various holidays, especially Christmas, uh, as if you've lost somebody.
00:15:07
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If you lost something, a job, your financial state has changed. Boy, that's a change that'll hit you hard, right? And especially if you're providing for a family.
00:15:23
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But you're not alone in this. Don't let that change in your financial state, in your relational state. Don't let that change change your mindset. Don't let it change because you have an unchangeable change that changed you when you received Christ. It is unchangeable.
00:15:50
Speaker
But when we take our mind off of Christ, take our mind off the truth of what has happened to us, when we forget what has happened, who we are, whose we are, then we begin to look outside of God, outside of Christ, outside of His provision,
00:16:18
Speaker
trying some things we probably already tried before to get those needs met of security, of love, of value, of worth, thinking we're missing something. That's the big lie. Did God really say that he's enough?
Enduring Loss with Faith
00:16:41
Speaker
Did he really, I mean, did he really mean it? I mean, look at what happened. You lost your job. You lost that significant someone. And the enemy starts to just tear away at the foundation of God's love for you, of his provision for you, of his provision in you.
00:17:08
Speaker
The enemy wants nothing more than to tear away your confidence in the one who loves you the most. Don't play into that game. Yes, when we lose something, we can be said. We should be said. It's a loss. We should grieve it. But we should grieve it knowing that God is with us, thanking him that he never leaves us, never forsakes us. The loss is real.
00:17:38
Speaker
And it's okay to grieve the loss. If you're not grieving the loss, then what you're doing is you're pushing it down and you're ignoring the pain. Don't do that. Let the pain come to the surface, experience it in the context of the very provision of an omnipotent God who loves you and who is your ultimate provider. And you can look to Him.
00:18:05
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Things may, you may lose more things. Your situation may actually get worse. And that's when you cling to the one who owns it all. And you ask him to provide.
Guidance and Decision-Making
00:18:26
Speaker
You ask him to show you what is my next step.
00:18:32
Speaker
Sometimes your next step is just to stop and to realize that you're in his care. Ask him what is your next step in the midst of whatever you may be going through, whatever change has happened in your circumstances, in your relationships. Father, what is
00:18:55
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My next step, what is the wise thing for me to do right now? And then by faith, take the step. You see, our journey of rest is not a journey of sedentary binge watching of life.
00:19:24
Speaker
Our journey is that. It is walking. We're always moving, and there's times we need to rest, and he leads us. Sometimes for many of you, and like me, he has to actually knock us over the head sometimes, so I need you to rest. Stop, stop, rest a while, come apart, rest. Because for many of us, we just have to, we just have this drive to keep moving.
00:19:53
Speaker
And we need to come away and replenish and rest on a regular basis. But for others of you, you tend toward when things get tough to isolate and to be immobilized. When the father is saying, have got something for you. I want you to take this step.
00:20:19
Speaker
So I would encourage you to seek the Father and say, Father, what is my next step in this particular area? And He will speak to your heart. Eyes open, people. Look for Him. Look for Him encouraging you through other people, through other messages. To take a step.
00:20:50
Speaker
I don't know what it is for you, but I want you to keep moving to keep walking. Or as that famous counselor in the movie Finding Nemo said, just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Dory said that, right? Sometimes we need to hear that. Sometimes we need to rest, but sometimes, you know, we need to hear just keep swimming and just move forward. Keep walking.
00:21:20
Speaker
And he promises this. He says in Proverbs, man plans his way. It's good to plan your way, but the Lord directs each step. Watch for his direction. Ask him to make that step clear for you.
Flexibility in Planning
00:21:42
Speaker
And especially as we come up to the new year, I probably will have something in the new year on this idea of planning. Maybe not. I know Michelle and I are going to have a summit, our own personal summit on some things that we just want to see for 2023. And we're going to plan our way and we'll trust the Lord to tweak it, direct our steps, maybe totally crashed the plan.
00:22:04
Speaker
and say, no, I really want you to go to this direction. Okay. We'll be flexible, plan your way, be flexible with the plan, and then start walking on this Christmas time. As we head into Christmas, I want you to, uh, as even in the midst of the change that might've happened or that's going to happen as we move closer to Christmas morning, I want you to ask the father, father, give me a heart.
Choosing Joy During Christmas
00:22:30
Speaker
of joy, to experience the joy you've given me a new heart, may I experience your joy in this season? Help me to walk in joy. In fact, I want you to choose to walk in joy. I want you to choose to sing, to sing songs of joy. That's what we do in this house. And we'll sing goofy secular songs. It just comes to our mind. We'll sing.
00:22:54
Speaker
or will laugh. Take time to laugh, choose joy at this time. I wanna encourage you to do that. So if you will, realize that yes, what a change. We've had so much change. Realize that you have been changed. A change that is unchangeable, it's transformative. Always remember that you have been changed.
00:23:22
Speaker
Don't let the negative circumstances of life change your outlook. Rest in the change that's already happened. And as you're walking, walk by His grace and His power and His love. And in this season, choose joy, choose life, and ask the Father how you can express His life.
00:23:50
Speaker
to others during this Christmas time. Christmas morning, I pray, may it be a morning filled with looking and praising God for the Savior that was born, praising God for the change that has happened, and thanking God for all that He has been to you in this last year. And you can say, as you get up,
00:24:19
Speaker
on Christmas morning that you're gonna stop talking about joy and cheer and you're gonna start walking in that joy and cheer always by His grace.
00:24:34
Speaker
You've been listening to Walking Free, a production of Grace Ministries International in Marietta, Georgia. For more information, go to our website at gmint.org. That's gminc.org.