We all avoid pain whenever possible. If there’s a way out, or a path around, we certainly choose it. We don’t like to be uncomfortable and so we keep to our usual patterns and habits. If we’re honest, we all have at least one area of our life that we know needs to be changed. But change is hard. Change can be painful. So we avoid what we know needs to be done, and push it to the back of our mind. Meanwhile God continues to convict us about the issue and the conflict grows worse by the day. It’s been well documented that few will change until staying where they are becomes more uncomfortable than the change itself. This should not be the way for followers of Jesus.
When the Holy Spirit of God shines the light on an area of our life that is not in line with the teachings of Christ, we should immediately set about rectifying the problem. After all, didn’t we swear our allegiance to Jesus when we asked Him to save us? Didn’t we surrender every area of our lives to Him? The practice of living out our faith on a daily basis is much more difficult and even painful than we probably ever imagined. After all, few churches teach about the painful consequences of devoting your life to Christ. That wouldn’t exactly swell the numbers of their congregation. Yet if we are serious about truly following Jesus, we must confront and walk through the pain of change.
We do not have to do this alone. The same Spirit of God that convicts us of the issue also comforts us and walks beside us as we eradicate it from our life. Pain is inevitable in growth, but the results are always more than worth the struggle involved in reaching the other side. As God stretches us, we are ever closer to reaching Heaven. God’s will is that His Kingdom would come to fruition on earth. Jesus prayed that God’s will would be done on earth as it is in Heaven (Matthew 6:9-13). As we become more like Jesus, we reflect His love and glory into our dark world and make it a little more like Heaven than it was before.
Without pain there can be no growth. Without pain, there is no transformation. Jesus wants to mold you into the person He created you to be. We’ll never get there if we spend our lives avoiding pain. We need the pressure and fire of life to hone us into exquisite vessels that display the beauty of God. It’s time we stopped fearing change and avoiding pain. We need to live up to the commitment we made to Jesus when we handed our lives over to Him. It might hurt, but it is the only way to be a true disciple of Jesus Christ. In what area of your own life have you been avoiding the pain of change? It’s time to get to work surrendering it to Jesus. I promise you it will be worth the pain.