bits from bob....

Renewal

by Robert J. Young
©, 2001, Robert J. Young
[permission is given to reprint with credit noted]

My prayer is that every Christian might find renewal in personal spiritual lives, and that every church might experience renewal as it reaches out into the vastness of our world at the beginning of the 21st century. Romans 12:2 suggests that a part of renewal involves transformation or change. 2 Corinthians 4:16 tells us that renewal must not be merely external, but most involve our very being and who we are.

As each of us seeks spiritual renewal, let me remind you of these Bible truths.

  • 1. Transformation is internal. It is not sufficient to simply dress up the external man. The heart of God's change and newness begins within. God promises us newness in Christ, and changed hearts. Nothing less will effect the transformation we seek. Conforming is insufficient and ineffective.
  • 2. Transition is inevitable. Nothing stays the same. Renewal demands life in the "here and now." To admit that one lives in the past is another way of saying one has not met the challenge of change. To be renewed, we must respond to the challenge of the present.

    God wants his people to grow! That means I, as a Christian, am in constant transition, and there is always trauma in transition. Therefore, I must choose. I either deal with the trauma or I cease to change. When I choose to cease transition, however, I also choose to cease growth.

    A person, or a people, not in transition cannot grow. Let us resolve to live lives that reflect this truth: "God's still working on me....to make me what I ought to be...."


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    Last updated November 23, 2001.