Only Nuns Change Their Habits Overnight

What an awesome title for a book - pity I didn't think of it or write it, I just borrowed it. My wife arrived home with a book with this title and instantly it started me thinking about change. Not the small coins that jangle annoyingly in your trousers pocket or fill up every small container in your car, but change - real change. Change of belief, change of knowledge, change of action, change of who we are to who God wants us to be. That sort of change.

I had an old youth leader who used to frustrate the life out of me and a number of my peers because he lived by his favorite saying - 'Constant change is here to stay'. Every September we would change how we did things in our youth group. We would change the small group we were in, everything would change. Peter was trying to teach us not to fear change, but to embrace it whenever we need it.

There is one fundamental flaw in this saying, and in trying to actually live it out with a church - PEOPLE DO NOT LIKE CHANGE!

I am learning that more and more each day. One thing that I am realizing is that people are much more willing to embrace change if it is the change they want to make. If there is an 'enforced' change then it seems that people just get out the shovels and dig the trenches a little deeper on those issues. Why is that? Why do we not like change? Why are we not willing to be led, even if that requires change?

I am unique, I know that. Well, actually everyone of us is unique. You are the only you that God created - He gets it right the first time. But few of us embrace our uniqueness and allow God to use that uniqueness for His glory. We gravitate towards a mid-line or a mean. We gravitate towards the lowest common denominator. We gravitate towards mediocrity. We need to CHANGE that!

We run the risk of being what every kid in school attempted to avoid - being average. Those average kids were always the 'ones in the middle of the pack' - they were always in a group. The ones on the upper edges or the lower edges were on their own. They were setting the pace - some in a good way and some in a bad way - but they were pace setters. It is interesting to me that even God has no time for mediocrity - in Revelation 3:15-16 "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth."

Oh my goodness!

If we continue to be average, if we continue to accept mediocre as a way of living then we become vomit in the throat of God - ready to be expectorated. What a thought! Can you see yourself going to church this Sunday and shaking hands with Pastor and Mrs Vomit, Mr Hughey Upchuck or Ms Boak McPukely? If that is repulsive to you then why do we live our lives as if mediocrity is an achievement? Why do we accept our churches as average and celebrate that at least we are not struggling like some other places? Why do we feel we have made it when we treat our church more like a social club than the bride of Christ?

We need to CHANGE!

As the title suggests, "Only Nuns Change Their Habits Overnight". Well, then it is time for many of us to join the nunnery. It is time for us to stop avoiding change because of the pain it may cause or because of the unknown that it brings or because we just don't want to. We are on a spiritual journey as believers, we are being "transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." according to 1 Corinthians 3:18 and again in Romans 12:2 we are told "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."

So what are we to do? Are we to remain as vomit or are we to take the changes being placed before us seriously? Do we believe that God is faithful and true? Do we believe that He loves us? Do we believe that He has a plan for us, a plan to prosper us and not to to harm us? Are we listening to his whispers? Or are we just playing it safe, taking the middle road, smoothing out the speed bumps, are we settlingn for mediocrity?

Dear God let the answer be "NO!!!!!"

We are called to be overcomers, we are called His children, we are called heirs to the throne, we are NOT AVERAGE! We need to lift our eyes to the throne room of the Father, we need to climb into His lap, and look in His eyes. We need to pour out the things that are weighing us down and we need to let go of them. We need to take on the burden that Jesus gives us -it is light and His yoke is easy.

Dear Lord why do we lose sight of the simple facts of what you have said to us?

It is time to rise up, to shake off the mediocrity that has besieged us and to do what we are called to do. To be the church that we are called to be. To change teh world with the love of Jesus, like He has called us to.

Can we change a habit overnight - ABSOLUTELY YES! Not only can we change a habit overnight, WE MUST. We need to stop whining when things get tough, we need to stop throwing dust on our heads and throwing our hands up in this 'woe is me' attitude and we need to put on the full armor of God that Eph 6 describes. We need to take our stand and when all else is done WE MUST STAND!!

We lift our shields of faith with which we can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. We need to take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God and we need to start to wield it in all of its power and defeat the enemy. The word says that 'ALL authority in heaven and on earth" has been given to Christ Jesus, and He gives that authority to us. It is time to walk in the authority that we should be walking in.

Stop looking at the economy, it can no longer be your idol. Stop looking at your bank account, you cannot serve two Master - God and money! Stop looking at what once was and wishing that we could return to that place once more. That time is gone, the lessons from the past should be used to help us navigate the future. Successes of the past are not landmarks and monuments that we need to recreate, we remember what God did at that time and find out what He wants to do now. Then we do it!

Rise up O men of God, have done with lesser things, give heart and mind and soul and strength to serve the King of Kings!

Amen and Amen!