How do you adapt to changes happening in your life? Change is hard and because life is nothing but change we need to somehow adapt to change. Some people have better ways to cope than others. At least, they are less destructive ways to adapt to changes. But learning to adapt to changes is a very important life skill. Or faith skill as I think of it.

Learning to adapt to change…

I’m sure you’ve realized that change is inevitable in life. If nothing else changes, your age does and that brings along changes for sure. But we also lose jobs, people get sick or die, children grow up and leave the nest, friendships are broken and others are formed, buildings are torn down and new roads are built where there used to be nothing. Change is constant. You get the picture.

How do we keep up with change? And how do we adapt to new situations? This is the key to living well. If we don’t know how to adapt to change, we will be lost in life. So…what to do then? How can we adapt to change? Here are a few faith-filled thoughts that might help you to embrace change.

We are confident that God is able to orchestrate everything to work toward something good and beautiful when we love Him and accept His invitation to live according to His plan. (Romans 8:28, VOICE,*)

… is a faith skill

The fear of change is fear of unknown. But as Christians, we know who is in charge of our lives. Hence we can relax. Our heavenly Father is in charge, we don’t have to be afraid of anything. Even if everything around us seems to change, God does not. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. So when the fear of future tries to paralyze you, just embrace God tighter, he is the God of peace and he has a good plan for you. He can change even ugly things into beauty when we surrender to him.

Also, using eternal perspective helps. When we remember this world is not all there is, we realize we would not even want to make this world a permanent residence. And if we truly are on our way to heaven, we want to be changed into more Christ-likeness. Hence we need change. Staying as we are is not an option.

…which is most deeded when life gets rough

When the change is not something we’d like to welcome into our lives, it’s good to remind ourselves that whatever brings us closer to God (through prayer) is a blessing in disguise. Not necessarily by the first glimpse but when we take a closer look, we can see how God is working in and through us in that situation. Hence any change is an opportunity for us to get closer to God, to get know him better or in a different way.

This world is not our destination, we are only passing through on our way to the better place. Hence we welcome all the changes God sees fit for us as he prepares us for eternity. We just need to pray God will also give us all the strength and wisdom needed to adapt well to the new situations along the way. And, guess what, God is delighted to answer those prayers and pour out everything we need on our way to heaven.

 

Gracious God,
Forgive us for fearing change,
for forgetting who is in charge of our lives.
Thank you that you do not change,
your promises are valid always valid.
Enable us to welcome change
as opportunities to grow in you.
Change our lives according to your plan.
Make us more like you.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Q4U: How do you adapt to change? Share your best ways with us!

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you embrace change as part of God’s plan for you!

*[As you might have noticed, I enjoy reading the Bible in different translations and love comparing them. I have started linking the Bible verses toBiblegateway.com so you can easily read (and compare) them in the different versions I’ve used while preparing each post.].

Photo by Balaji Malliswamy on Unsplash. Linking up today with Dance with Jesus, Five-minute Friday.