Encouragement for When You Face Change
Change needn’t be scary when we’re in God’s hands. Let’s consider it an opportunity to experiencne God’s faithfulness in new ways.
Changes come whether we’re ready or not, and we can all use encouragement when we face them.
Sometimes change gives advance warning. Other times, it shows up unexpectedly. Sometimes it’s welcome. Other times, not so much. No matter what, change calls for resilience.
I spent Labor Day weekend at my youngest daughter’s home. She’s experiencing change as her firstborn starts kindergarten this week. I remember facing that change, too, when my son boarded the school bus for his first day of school.
True confession—Sailor-Man and I hopped in our car and followed the bus to the school to ensure our boy’s safe arrival, and then I cried all the way home.
Possible Changes We Face
Maybe, like my daughter, you’re sending your firstborn to school (or university) this fall, too. Perhaps you’re facing an empty nest for the first time and wondering what life will look like. Or maybe you’re beginning a season you never anticipated – facing a divorce, raising your grandchildren, or caring for a senior parent.
Maybe you’re about to start a new job, return to school, or retire. Or perhaps you’ve moved to a new location and finding your way through a maze of newness after leaving all things familiar behind.
Change wears alot of different faces. What does yours look like, I wonder?
Encouragement for You When Facing Change
No matter what change looks like for me and you, we can rest assured we don’t have to figure it out on our own. Here’s a tidbit of encouragement for when facing change.
- C – Christ promised to never leave you. You are not alone. (Matthew 28:20)
- H – Hope for the best outcome is ours because God is sovereign over every detail of our lives. (Psalm 37:23-24)
- A – Anxiety is normal, but it needn’t control us because God invites us to cast our cares on Him (1 Peter 5:7).
- N – Negative thoughts about where our change might lead can take us down endless, and pointless, bunny trails. That’s why it’s vital to bring our thoughts into captivity. (2 Corinthians 10:5)
- G – God’s known about this change since before time began. He’s got this, and He’s got you.(Isaiah 41:13)
- E – Expect God to answer when you call on Him for courage and strength to navigate the change well. (Isaiah 40:29)
Change needn’t be scary when we’re in God’s hands. Let’s consider it an opportunity to know and experience Him in new ways and trust Him to teach us the resilience needed to navigate it well.
How About You?
What change are you facing? Here’s a suggested prayer to make your own.
“Almighty God, in Your strength and wisdom, I choose to embrace this change as an opportunity to experience Your faithfulness in new ways. Thank You for walking through this season with me. I will trust You and face newness with confident expectation that You are up to something good. In Jesus’s name, amen.”
Know you are loved,
Grace
The news headlines tell us that we’re living in unbelievably chaotic days. My latest devotional books provide biblical hope and encouragement when our minds feel like they’re on overload.
Available wherever Christian books are sold or order your autographed copies here.
The news headlines tell us that we’re living in unbelievably chaotic days. My latest devotional books provide biblical hope and encouragement when our minds feel like they’re on overload.
Available wherever Christian books are sold or order your autographed copies here.
Thank you for sharing your life and thoughts and your knowing the Lord with us! I love the way you express yourself!
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Hi Peta:
Thank you for pausing to join me here. With the plethora of information out there, I feel honored that you choose to read what I write. Have you signed up for my updates? If not, you can do so on my website.
Have a wonderful day!
Grace
Thank you, Grace.
I shared your post with a friend who is starting her empty nest change after 28 years with kids in the home.
I also saved your post to reread when I struggle with my changes . I’ve been retired for 4 years, CHANGE, but still learning what God wants me to learn in my “allotment “, my Timnath Serah.
“When they had finished dividing the land into its allotted portions, the Israelites gave Joshua son of Nun an inheritance among them, as the LORD had commanded. They gave him the town he asked for—Timnath Serah in the hill country of Ephraim” (Joshua 19:49-50a, NIV). [Thought taken from a devotion.]
Ps, I enjoy your email newsletters. 🤗 They make me feel loved.
Hey, Becky! Thanks for sharing my post with your friend. Becoming an empty nester after 28 years with children in the home is a big deal. With God’s help, she’ll do just fine. He’s with her all the way. Thanks, too, for sharing the thought about Timnath Sarah. I’d never thought about it in this context. Great thought! And PS: I’m so glad my newsletters make you feel loved. That makes my heart sing.
Know you are loved,
Grace