5 Things You Can Do During Life Changes
Women
Audio By Carbonatix
By Gina Smith, Crosswalk.com
Despite the message of our culture that whispers in our ears on a daily basis, telling us that we need to fight the aging process, the reality is that it is impossible to accomplish what we are told we should strive for. Every time we live another day, we have aged a little more!
I believe that aging is a blessing and each day is a gift. The fact that I have made it to this point in life is something to be celebrated and something to be grateful for. I've been blessed to raise two children and see them get married. I'm so thankful to have been married for almost 34 years. Yes, I am thankful for the gift of being alive for almost six decades, and I really don't mind the fine lines and wrinkles that have appeared on my face. They are evidence of the gift of time and life that God has given me. They remind me of His faithfulness over the years.
Life Is Good, but Life Is Hard
Even though I am grateful for the years I have been given and view each one as a gift, I find myself wondering how it is possible that I have come to the place I am at in life! How is it that I am actually the age that I am?! How did I get here? How am I already an empty nest mom? Didn't I just give birth to those two precious people who are now grown and married? It's hard to comprehend that I am already in this season of life, and, as much as I have loved each season I've been gifted, the changes and losses that I have experienced have changed me, have magnified the truth that I am not in control, and have caused me to feel vulnerable and even a bit fragile.
I am finding that life changes are happening more quickly and closer together. I hardly have time to adjust and catch my breath, and I am hit with another one. Navigating change is hard, and it is important that I be willing to keep changing as well. I am finding that I need to change my way of thinking in some areas, change my schedule, change my expectations, and be okay when life doesn't look like I thought it might in this season of life. It can sometimes be overwhelming.
Yet, even the difficult changes in life are a gift if I am able to see them from a biblical perspective because, when I respond correctly, they help me not to get stuck in my ways, cause me to press in closer to God, and send me on a quest to know Him and His Word better. This continual adjustment and clinging to God are what will equip me for the next big changes that are destined to come.
Am I Willing to Change?
I believe that I need to embrace life's changes and allow God to change me through them. If I am unwilling to change and adjust, then I am in danger of being rendered "useless" as I get older. I will get set in my ways, stubborn, and bitter when life throws me a curveball. As hard as it might be, we can live our lives as unto the Lord, adjusting to the changes, with the help and strength of God. We can be faithful to the end if we live out the Scriptures that tell us not to account our life of any value or as precious to ourselves, but finish the course and ministry that we have received from the Lord (Acts 20:24). We are to lay aside every weight and the sin which clings so closely and run with endurance the race set before us (Hebrews 12:1), trust that he who began a good work in me will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6), and choose not to grow weary of doing good because in due season I will reap if I do not give up (Galatians 6:9).
How can a person embrace and accept life's changes with the perspective that God has rather than fight the process like the culture encourages us to do?
5 Things You Can Do:
- Take time and reflect on where you've come from and all the details that went into every choice and every decision. If you have been seeking God for wisdom and guidance, you can be assured that you are where you are at because you've been led there. God is still with you and is in control. He will not forsake you. He is with you to the end.
- Do not allow the enemy's lies to derail you or the uninformed assumptions and comments of others to drown out the voice of God and the memories of His leading and faithfulness. If you are facing times of doubt or discouragement, God's leading and faithfulness should always drown out the enemy's voice and the voices (even the well-meaning ones) around you. God has led you, and He alone knows what is best for you.
- Be confident in how God has led you over the years and that He has a purpose in why He has led in the way that He has, even when you don't understand why He has led you to a particular destination. And, move forward, one day at a time, in confidence--not the kind of confidence that the world encourages (confidence in ourselves and our abilities) but confidence in the God you have been relying on all of these years. He has not changed. He can be relied on.
- Remember that all that God has done in the past has equipped you for the place He has you in at this very moment, and He will continue to equip you for the future. He will equip you, enable you, and carry you!
- Remember that following and serving Jesus is not a career choice or an intellectual or academic exercise. It is not a job that you one day retire from. It is a lifelong calling and a way of life that we are to live in every season.
One day we will stand before God and give an account for every day that He has gifted us. We must work to shun the world's ideas of aging, embrace the gift of each day that we are given and all the changes that come with them, and purpose to do our best to present ourselves to God as one approved, "a worker who has no need to be ashamed." (2 Timothy 2:15), one day at a time.
Rejoice in the gift of another day and embrace the changes. Allow God to continue to change and mold you into the image of his Son. (Romans 8:29) You can be confident in the God you are serving, no matter what season of life you are in, no matter what age you are, and no matter what changes you are facing. Life is good, but life is hard, and God is faithful.
Gina Smith is a wife of 37 years, mom of 2, and grandma of 3. She is a writer and author, writing her very first published book in her empty nest years. She has a passion to come alongside the younger generation to encourage them, strengthen them in God, and learn from them. You can find Gina at her website www.ginalsmith.com, and her book Everyday Prayers for Joy can be found anywhere books are sold. 
