«Follow Me, and I will make you!» – here is a key to changes

Greetings to you, my dear friends! Welcome to „Daily Word for Spiritual Edification”! May God’s grace accompany you this day! I thank God for the opportunity to share with you the word God has placed in my heart.

During a number of days we have been talking about God calling us into a season of change. If you once made a decision to become a believer, along with it you accepted God’s call to make daily radical changes in your life. God will be making the necessary changes in your life until your life starts reflecting the image of Christ.

We also talked about the fact that when we willingly let God to change us, then it is easy for him to alter our circumstances and situations around us. For example, if you have problems in your family and you allow God to change YOU, then your family problems will be eventually solved. All marital problems usually are caused by the character issues in both spouses. Many wives have won the battles with different addictions of their husbands because they allowed God to work on their own character during these battles. The changes in wives reflect on their husbands, and the changes in husbands have their effect on the wives. So, God calls us all to change.

We also established that in order for us to change we need to answer God call to follow Jesus.

«And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, „Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men”» (Mathew, 4:18-19).

«Follow Me, and I will make you!» – here is a key to changes. My dedication, my firm commitment to follow Jesus – this is the first sign of the true desire to change.

Then, in Romans we see that changes require us to renew our minds by the Word of God.

 «And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God» (Romans, 12:2).

When I read the Word, meditate on it and apply it to my life, I initiate changes in my life and actions, since my thoughts and views grow alike with God’s thoughts and His will. God says that His thoughts and His ways are not like ours.

 «For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts» (Isaiah, 55:8, 9).

We won’t be able to grow into the likeness of God’s Son until we start thinking God’s thoughts and walking God’s ways. This is why it is so crucially important to renew our minds by God’s Word which contains and perfectly reflects God’s thoughts and His ways.

The renewing of the mind means reprogramming and reloading one’s thought system. My thoughts define my actions; my actions define my habits, and my habits determine my character. The character is the one thing that lays the course of one’s life or destiny. So in order to change our destiny, our character we have to change our thought patterns; we need to start thinking the way God thinks. The renewing of the mind brings changes into my life. If as a believer I continue thinking the old way then I won’t become what God wants to see me. So in order for me to change I have to renew my mind and allow God’s truth to affect my thinking patterns.

Then we also talked about the fact that any changes require me to learn to identify with the new nature I received at the new birth.

 “..that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians, 4:22-24).

If you continue to identify with the lifestyle of the old man then your repentance won’t bring any substantial changes. When you received Jesus Christ into your heart along with Him you received a new life. And now you need to make an effort to learn the power and possibilities of the new man and to put on the fullness of God.

Till tomorrow!

God bless you!

Pastor Rufus Ajiboye