Every milestone brings change. I talked about the freedom in milestones yesterday, but sometimes it is the change that comes with the milestones that make us feel like we’re losing freedom.
Change can be paralyzing. Even though we go through changes all the time, some changes surprise us, confuse us, and make us doubt ourselves or the path we’re on.
When I was a teenager in the church youth group, our youth pastor left to plant a church. Before he left, he talked to us about change. He basically said that we shouldn’t be afraid of change because it will happen. We can embrace it and know that God is with us through any and all changes.
I thought he made a lot of sense and thought I had embraced change from that moment on. Perhaps I did, but isn’t it that just as we finally get a handle on things and think we have life figured out, we face bigger things? Bigger changes. Bigger challenges. God entrusts us with more.
There was a point when I didn’t think I can handle any more changes. I wanted all the challenges to stop. I wanted to run away from the problems and start fresh somewhere. Ironic, isn’t it? Moving is one of the biggest changes we can make in life, but I thought it was the way to escape change.
Change doesn’t have to paralyze us. Yes, some changes are good and we welcome them. Other changes, we’re not too happy about. Those changes don’t have to paralyze us in fear, confusion, or doubt. They don’t have to make us want to run away.
How? By leaning into them. We can lean into the hard and tough changes. We can embrace them instead of pushing them away. They’re going to happen no matter what. Instead of cowering from them, throwing a tantrum, or hiding from the world, we can accept them.
Acknowledge that they are happening. Admit that we have no control. Breathe and find the silver linings. Look forward to the better things ahead. Remember that everything will be okay.
That’s the freedom in change. It’s in our response and attitude. It’s in how we grasp onto hope and focus on a better future.
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