Change

It is a word that terrifies some of us. It is a word that may indicate something is wrong and needs fixing (The Braves), something evil has happened and needs to be eradicated (ISIL), someone has decided to quit on you (fill in your own blanks), things have gotten too complacent (change of scenery), or maybe like me, you just need a change of pace or routine to jump start your week. This is that week for me.

The travel on my job as most know has sent me on some amazing and long trips to Florida and Alabama (lots of great scenery), and during a "new" normal week Orlando - Lakeland - Tampa and maybe Sarasota/Ft. Lauderdale and Pensacola/Daphne, AL are all crammed into a week. It is exhausting sometimes but I am so thankful for the opportunity. However, one can get way too complacent and struggle with the most mundane of tasks when fatigued.

So, we changed it up this week. Now I am back home in ATL for the first Wednesday in more than 6 months, and I feel refreshed. And, I just got to see my granddaughter crawl for the very first time. Much more fun than buying cars. Which made me think about Jesus getting away from the crowds, and how he came back with even more enthusiasm after a short break from the human race. And he got to witness some amazing faith when he came back.

We, as humans get caught up in that race, and we need to change it up every now and then to stay sharp, stay connected and give our faith a jolt. We need to understand that getting in a rut of some sort can cause all kinds of strange thoughts and actions. For the divine Jesus it was an easy change up, but for us we cannot see as clearly as he, and even with the guidance of His Holy Spirit we can dig ourselves a big dark hole by boxing ourselves into too much routine and not enough changes of pace.

In the 1990 book "Psycho-cybernetics", the plastic surgeon Maxwell Maltz suggested that changing your routine with such a simple thing as reversing the way you tie your shoes (left first, right second, etc.) can make you see differently. So here's the hidden point of today's blog.......

If your faith is on the rocks, mundane and complacent, dead except for Sunday's, or your routine of worship has created repetition instead of repentance and respect for the Lord, change something about how you approach it all. Talk to a brother or sister, go to a different small group, stand up during one of Dusty's or Don's sermons and shout AMEN, be bold, be aggressive and make a change before it's too late. 

Make a change before change is forced upon you! The results may be so much better.