Change is one of the hardest things to lead or be a part of in ministry. People, on the whole, don't really like change at all. We all get set in routines and blocked in to the way things always are and when something gets in the way of that routine it messes everything up.
I think that potentially the reason we dislike change so much is that it is virtually impossible to just make a small change, or for a change to just affect one area of life. We change what time we get up which changes how quickly we have to shower which changes how late we are to work which changes the mood our boss is in all day which changes the mood we are in when we get home to relax and spend time with family which changes the time we go to bed that night.
Even little changes seem to have drastic effects on life, so it makes sense that people would not be too excited about change, especially if they don't have a say in what it is that changes.
It seems that there is a deeper issue embedded in the hearts of people than simply a dislike for changing.
There is something inside of us that causes us to balk at the idea of having the routine broken and the normality upset.We see this illustrated beautifully in the story of the rich young ruler. A young eager man runs up to Jesus asking him what it is that he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus responds with an answer the man would have been thrilled to hear. "You know the commandments, follow them!". That was nothing new. He had being doing that since he was a boy, he probably did that out of habit and knew the laws inside and out. Jesus next words would have been crushing. "Then sell all you have, give the money to poor, and follow me."
Jesus did not ask him to do some extreme act of penance. That would not have been all that out of the ordinary. He did not tell him to simply donate a large amount of money to the poor, it could be expected that this man gave regularly of his possessions. He told him to sell all that owned and follow. That is the key. This was not just a man who owned many things, this was a man who owned much land. The word translated as possessions or properties (ktema) is directly defined as property, lands, or estates. Jesus was asking him to give up his normality, the place and things that made him comfortable, to follow someone that was unpredictable.
It seems that the root of issue of change is not helping people accept a new idea, but guiding people in a lifestyle of constant change. Guiding people in a lifestyle that holds loosely to the things that make us comfortable and tightly to He that makes us righteous.
As pastors and leaders we must understand that it is not simply carnality that holds people back it is fear. It is not malicious intent that causes some to undermine and some to refuse to budge, it is a brokenness that is found in all of us manifested in the desire to be in control and the refusal to step into the unknown. Those that are complacent and hypocritical are just as loved and are offered the same grace by Christ as those that the complacent are judging and the hypocritical are condemning. We must also understand that we are just as likely to refuse change as they are. When we hold so tightly to our new plans and visionary goals that we cannot follow an unpredictable Savior down an unknown path we embody the mindset of the rich young ruler. We have many possessions that make us comfortable, and we rely on them.
The story of the rich young ruler ends with Jesus explaining how hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom. I wonder if he was referring less to those physically rich and more to those who's hearts say "I am rich and in need of nothing." We who spiritually refuse let go of control and follow the unpredictable, yet completely trustworthy, Savior.
The first step to leading change is living a lifestyle of change. Living a lifestyle that only holds tightly to one thing, and that is Christ. The steps that follow are the steps of the Savior.
And the only thing harder than leading change is following something that is changing.
I think that potentially the reason we dislike change so much is that it is virtually impossible to just make a small change, or for a change to just affect one area of life. We change what time we get up which changes how quickly we have to shower which changes how late we are to work which changes the mood our boss is in all day which changes the mood we are in when we get home to relax and spend time with family which changes the time we go to bed that night.
Even little changes seem to have drastic effects on life, so it makes sense that people would not be too excited about change, especially if they don't have a say in what it is that changes.
It seems that there is a deeper issue embedded in the hearts of people than simply a dislike for changing.
There is something inside of us that causes us to balk at the idea of having the routine broken and the normality upset.We see this illustrated beautifully in the story of the rich young ruler. A young eager man runs up to Jesus asking him what it is that he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus responds with an answer the man would have been thrilled to hear. "You know the commandments, follow them!". That was nothing new. He had being doing that since he was a boy, he probably did that out of habit and knew the laws inside and out. Jesus next words would have been crushing. "Then sell all you have, give the money to poor, and follow me."
Jesus did not ask him to do some extreme act of penance. That would not have been all that out of the ordinary. He did not tell him to simply donate a large amount of money to the poor, it could be expected that this man gave regularly of his possessions. He told him to sell all that owned and follow. That is the key. This was not just a man who owned many things, this was a man who owned much land. The word translated as possessions or properties (ktema) is directly defined as property, lands, or estates. Jesus was asking him to give up his normality, the place and things that made him comfortable, to follow someone that was unpredictable.
It seems that the root of issue of change is not helping people accept a new idea, but guiding people in a lifestyle of constant change. Guiding people in a lifestyle that holds loosely to the things that make us comfortable and tightly to He that makes us righteous.
As pastors and leaders we must understand that it is not simply carnality that holds people back it is fear. It is not malicious intent that causes some to undermine and some to refuse to budge, it is a brokenness that is found in all of us manifested in the desire to be in control and the refusal to step into the unknown. Those that are complacent and hypocritical are just as loved and are offered the same grace by Christ as those that the complacent are judging and the hypocritical are condemning. We must also understand that we are just as likely to refuse change as they are. When we hold so tightly to our new plans and visionary goals that we cannot follow an unpredictable Savior down an unknown path we embody the mindset of the rich young ruler. We have many possessions that make us comfortable, and we rely on them.
The story of the rich young ruler ends with Jesus explaining how hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom. I wonder if he was referring less to those physically rich and more to those who's hearts say "I am rich and in need of nothing." We who spiritually refuse let go of control and follow the unpredictable, yet completely trustworthy, Savior.
The first step to leading change is living a lifestyle of change. Living a lifestyle that only holds tightly to one thing, and that is Christ. The steps that follow are the steps of the Savior.
And the only thing harder than leading change is following something that is changing.
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