We're Wired to Change in Community

Here's a pattern I see lived out much too often in Christians:

1. My life's a mess -- I need to CHANGE!
2. I work hard at changing, but I come to realize I can't change ME by changing my checkbook, calendar, mission statement, etc.
3. Somebody shares with me that if I try Jesus, He'll REALLY change me!
4. I decide to give Jesus a try and become a Christian (I think).
5. Other Christians tell me now that I'm a Christian the key to REALLY changing is to go to church a lot and read the Bible a lot and hang with other Christians a lot.
6. I try all of that and even enjoy some of it, but I'm frustrated because I don't CHANGE like I think I should.
7. After awhile, I get mad and try hanging with some OTHER Christians because the ones I'm hanging with aren't doing a good job changing me.
8. My next group of Christians try but THEY don't get the job done either so I try somewhere else!
9. After changing scenery, changing friends, changing Bible study methods, etc., I'm still leaving a "trail" behind me filled with disappointment and broken relationships and the same STUFF I've been dragging around for years.
10. Now what?

Sound familiar to you? I'm tired of seeing this lived out all around me in His church. I believe the key to real, lasting change is RELATIONSHIP: 1) Marriage (Covenant) relationship with Christ, and 2) transparent relationship with other Christ followers.

Here's the rub: I'm a work in process, others around me are works in process, and because we're in the process of BEING changed, we don't handle everything right. We get mad at each other and take off and in the process, run away from the horizontal relationships He (our vertical relationship) wants to use to CHANGE us.

So, we end up frustrated because we don't CHANGE like we think we should!

How 'bout we try hanging in with the people He's surrounded us with and surrender to His plan to change us? Sound like a plan?

Wonderful Counselor

We're into a multi-part series on the Names of Jesus on Sunday mornings at CLA. Last Sunday we spent a good portion of the morning looking at "Wonderful Counselor" from Isaiah 9:6 --

"For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

From the original language, here's a peak at the two words "wonderful" and "counselor" --

• pele' (peh'-leh); beyond understanding, too wonderful for words.
• ya'ats (yaw-ats'); to advise, to consult, to guide.

In other words, we have a Guide that's WAY beyond our ability to describe! If that's the case, how should we interact with our Counselor?

1. Be totally transparent with Him -- lay everything on the table.
2. Listen to what He tells us.
3. DO what He says!

Can you imagine how our lives would look if those GUIDE-lines were at the center of every day?