miracle of life change.qxp, Study notes of Business

Download miracle of life change.qxp and more Study notes Business in PDF only on Docsity! 1 In order for you to understand how holy transformation oc- curs, you need a completely different picture of how God works in your life. God has included an object lesson in nature that gives the exact word He uses when He describes a trans- formed life. God’s Word says, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2, emphasis added). That passage tells us that breaking the world’s pattern or mold and allowing ourselves to be transformed will not only include a renewed mind but will also “test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” In other words, transforma- tion means we will become what God wants us to become! The word translated “transformed” in the verse above is the Greek word metamorphoō. God’s Word actually instructs us to be morphed, or changed. This word and the amazing natural process it describes help us to begin to think quite WHAT DOES A CHANGED LIFE LOOK LIKE?
21 miracle of life change.qxp 5/11/04 1:57 PM Page 21 T H E M I R A C L E O F L I F E C H A N G E 22  differently and more accurately about how God brings about spiritual change in our lives. This single word provides the key for understanding how spiritual transformation occurs. It directly challenges our ideas about trying harder to live holy lives. It emphasizes God ’s power and participation in our transformation. Our way leads to frustration, failure, and disappointment. God ’s way leads to metamorphosis: a changed life. Which one do you want to experience? ROLL THE TAPE! A time-lapse photographer captured with exquisite care the process through which a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. I showed the tape to several large groups to visually introduce what I call the process of spiritual morphing. We shared a wonder unfolding before our eyes. In less than two minutes, we watched a sequence of change and struggle that actually lasted several days. Some miracles happen so slowly that we don’t notice them until we see them in high speed. Let me de- scribe it for you. The opening shot brings us face to mandible with an awk- ward, pondering, many-humped worm. The worm rapidly de- vours the leaf on which it is sitting. Then it seems to stop for a break, hanging tentatively from a stem. The next action begins at the caterpillar’s other end. A silk strand appears, and the caterpillar begins gyrating, wrapping itself in the fine thread. Soon the worm has disappeared into its self-made enclosure, suspended in air. The light behind the pouch shifts and we note that the contents seem transparent. The caterpillar turns out to be a magician. He ’s gone. But wait! The pouch suddenly appears to blush, then dark- en. It ’s moving. The cocoon splits, unable to contain its strug- gling contents. A creature emerges, at first even less attractive miracle of life change.qxp 5/11/04 1:57 PM Page 22 25 What Does a Changed Life Look Like?
the beginning of that process with various words. The mo- ment you came to Christ, you were saved and forgiven, and the Spirit of God entered your heart. God ’s game plan from that point on uses every circumstance, every person, every disappointment, every bit of suffering, and every touch of joy to conform (morph) you into the very likeness of His Son (see Romans 8:29; Ephesians 2:10). Even those people who don’t yet know Christ long to be morphed. The clues in our culture are obvious. Self-help books and seminars have grown into a multibillion-dollar in- dustry because we ’re made in the image of our Creator and long to recapture what is now missing. Something inside each of us says, “I want to change. I want to grow. I want to do bet- ter. I want to be better!” I’ve never met anyone who says, “You know, I’m not a very good parent, and I’d like to get worse.” People don’t say, “I’m an average golfer, but I’d like to raise my handicap.” Couples don’t look into each other’s eyes and say, “You know, honey, we have a good marriage, but maybe we could communicate less and work toward a divorce in five years.” No, the desire for positive change is relentless. SPIRITUAL METAMORPHOSIS Every person wants to grow and develop, even if they don’t use those terms to describe the desire. The reason isn’t hard to find. The spiritual DNA in our souls is God-given. We were designed to change. What we often lack is direction and encouragement. These also come from God. Philippians 2:13 says, “For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (NASB). Similar to what we see in nature, spiritual metamorphosis usually involves three major stages: miracle of life change.qxp 5/11/04 1:57 PM Page 25 T H E M I R A C L E O F L I F E C H A N G E 26  • First, there is birth—the initial stage (John 3:1–16; 2 Corinthians 5:17). Spiritually, that ’s when Jesus becomes your Savior. Your sins are forgiven, you are justified in God’s sight, the Holy Spirit takes up resi- dence within you, and you become part of the family of God. You are spiritually born! • Second, after birth there is a process that leads to spiritual maturity (Philippians 1:6; Colossians 2:6–7). In this stage you begin to significantly reflect the person and character of Christ. The fruit of the Spirit ’s work within you progressively yields love, joy, peace, and patience in your heart as well as in your relationships with others. • Third, as you continue to grow, you will become more a part of the disciple-making process. This is called spiritual reproduction (Matthew 28:19–20; 2 Timothy 2:2). Like everything in the animal king- dom, a sign of real maturity is the capacity to repro- duce. At that point, Jesus is not only your Lord, but He also uses you in the process of birthing and grow- ing other new believers. UNDERSTANDING MORPHING The worm-to-butterfly process gives us an illustration of spiritual metamorphosis, but the entire process has to be un- derstood at a personal level. It is not enough to explain it in theological jargon or in such glowing experiential language that we honestly wonder if it ’s possible at all. So, allow me to give you a realistic picture of spiritual metamorphosis through the life of a friend that I have known for over ten years. Consider this story of my friend Geoff to miracle of life change.qxp 5/11/04 1:57 PM Page 26 27 What Does a Changed Life Look Like?
be a time-lapse review of God ’s morphing work in one per- son’s life. As I describe Geoff ’s spiritual birth, growth to ma- turity, and spiritual reproduction, ask yourself, Where am I in God’s spiritual morphing process? GEOFF’S STORY Geoff is a good friend with an unusual spelling for the name Jeff. If you met Geoff today, you would observe a man entering middle age with stability, calm, and a contented smile on his face most of the time. You wouldn’t know, unless you asked, the chaos in his background. You wouldn’t appreciate, unless you listened, the remarkable transformation that brought him out of a destructive childhood, a downward-spiraling early adulthood, and a life of wreckage to where he lives to- day. But Geoff would be the first to tell you that nothing in his life today is a credit to his persistence, wisdom, efforts, or abilities. He knows that God has transformed his life. Geoff grew up in a broken home. An absent father and an alcoholic mother provided little sense of parental care. His mother attempted suicide several times during his childhood. In unconscious ways he imitated his mother’s self-destructive behaviors. He remembers his years from high school into his thirties as a haze of alcohol, drugs, and strange experiences with cults. Broken relationships littered these decades of his life. Geoff ’s early success with his own business was poisoned by his tendency to make rash and unwise decisions. Both his business and his body suffered increasing difficulties because of his choices. He had to declare bankruptcy. His kidneys be- gan to fail, overwhelmed by the flow of chemicals he was in- gesting. Geoff showed all the signs of a lost and wasted life. At some point during the final downhill slide, Geoff met miracle of life change.qxp 5/11/04 1:57 PM Page 27 T H E M I R A C L E O F L I F E C H A N G E 30  get his personal finances in order. He discovered sin was still a problem. But he learned that there was help and hope. God was working. He became an avid reader of good books and a faithful student of God ’s Book. He became immersed in a process we will describe at length later, but underwent a preparation for maturity. Now Geoff ’s focus transcends his own spiritual and emo- tional needs. He has become a younger Will South—a spiritu- al reproducer. He looks around at work and sees dozens of men who live what he used to live. And rising inside of himself he feels a compassion for these men that overwhelms him. He feels compelled to treat them, in as many ways as possible, the way he knows he was treated when he was lost. These men raise questions and challenge Geoff to learn. He knows that the frontiers of spiritual growth and learning are still before him. He ’s come a long distance, but he knows God has much more ahead for him. God sent Will South into his life at a criti- cal moment. Geoff now asks God to send him into the lives of others the same way. I’ve watched Geoff grow over the past decade. I’ve heard his questions, felt his struggles, cried with him in hard lessons, rejoiced in his victories. I’ve seen the changes. I know that God has worked His morphing wonder in my friend. Along the way, He brought a wonderful woman into Geoff ’s life. The personal transformation in his life is reflected in his fam- ily. The chaotic core of his life has been replaced with a deep sense of rightness with God. I’m overwhelmed by all that God has done in Geoff ’s life. Perhaps because of where he started, the changes in Geoff are easy to identify. What ’s not so easy to explain is why they happened. When you hear about a life like Geoff ’s—with such definite and dramatic changes—there ’s a temptation to think, Wow, that’s really neat. There must be a special category of miracle of life change.qxp 5/11/04 1:57 PM Page 30 31 What Does a Changed Life Look Like?
Christians who have these very dramatic life-change stories. That’s not me. Does God like these people more than He likes the rest of us? We tend to think it is abnormal, unusual, and not re- ally possible for all of us. Nothing could be further from the truth! What happened to Geoff was normal. He ’s the first to report that while he was directly involved in every decision in his new life, the effects and the desire to make the right deci- sion did not come from him alone. He realizes that God was actively bringing about transformation in his life. It didn’t happen because he was smarter or more favored by God, or even because he tried harder than other Christians. It hap- pened because Geoff came to know, understand, and coop- erate early in his Christian life with how God works in the holy transformation process. What does a changed life look like? It looks like a worm becoming a butterfly. It looks like a guy who was lost and alone becoming a guy who can lead someone else home. The details of a changed life may vary, but remember this—it is the norm, available to all believers, and something only God can do. miracle of life change.qxp 5/11/04 1:57 PM Page 31