The first time I heard the statement, “There is no change if there is no change,” I thought it redundant. But after the Holy Spirit explained it to me I saw the value of this truth: If you want tomorrow to be different from yesterday, you must do something different today.
The World (society) says, “More is better.” Scripture says, “Different is better.” Bringing about positive change in our lives is not easy -even though we want to do so; thus the time-worn debilitating phrase: “The harder I try the be-hinder I get.”
Step One in bringing about positive change is to understand the three levels of change: Superficial, Situational and Substantial. Today we will look at the elements of the Superficial Level.
The Superficial Level of change I describe as the New Year’s Eve Resolution type of change. As soon as I state this many think they know exactly where I am going with this thought, but there is a deeper facet of this level many do not recognize.
One of the greatest mistakes regarding making New Year’s Eve Resolutions (what ever time of the year they are made) is telling people we have made them. We would like to think family and friends would be pleased we’re attempting to bring about positive changes and would be supportive of us while doing so. Wrong!
These would-be supporters often turn into vultures watching every move we make waiting to pounce on us if we fail to make the goals we set. This is difficult enough to weather, but worse than that we may begin to think they are right. It may be I can’t change. It may be too late for me to change. We may begin to believe we are hopeless and helpless.
Then depression sets in. But, take heed. Depression, most often, is the results of the problem – not the cause.
Next Time: The Situational Level of Change.
