My granddaughter’s voice was happy and excited as she exclaimed, “Hi Grama, I got 7th place in my division!” My response was typical of most grand parents, “That’s awesome, I am so happy for you! That’s a big improvement, what did you do better this race?” Her response was immediate, “My transition times were much faster Grama, and my biking and running improved too!”
There was that word again, “transition”. I just can’t escape seem to escape it!
So continuing on from our last discussion on “Transition” I wanted to establish what I believe to be the number one building block to making transitions in life satisfying. Here it is, drum roll…..it’s God! Now, let’s clarify: the first step is to believe there is a God, then it is vital to know Him, then to experience the satisfaction I am referring to in transition the key element is to “trust Him”.
As a follower of Christ i.e., Christian, I believe that trusting in God is the key to freedom and peace in “all” things in life. Maybe you are thinking, “well I trust God, its all these other things around me making my life miserable”. Scripture is clear there is trouble in this world, a time to mourn, a time to heal, a time to uproot, etc. Life is difficult! I am NOT talking living as though “I must be happy I lost my job, or my child was hurt, or a loved one passed away”. No, I am speaking about the very first step in all situations that makes for a better transition: “turning to God first and repeatedly.”
How do I grow in my trust of God? Many ways, but first let’s talk about getting to know more about him because we don’t trust strangers. Fortunately He wrote an autobiography, you probably know it as the “Holy Bible”. Lots of folks look at it as a story about Israel and certain Israelites we call “bible characters”. Certainly there are people in the bible because for some crazy reason God created them (us) to hang out with Him. But the story is about God, who He is, what is important to Him, how important we are to Him and what His plans are for us. So, reading His story is the first way you can learn to trust Him by getting to know Him. I once heard a definition of “love” as “always wanting the best for the other person”. I have never forgotten that definition and with that in mind, I’d say that God’s autobiography is the greatest love story ever written and all other love stories follow its pattern.
Transition 101 means get your bible out and start reading everyday. I recommend listening when you’re not reading. When you’re not reading God’s story then read something someone else wrote about Him, saturate yourself with who HE IS, not who you think He is or who you want Him to be.
In closing, here’s a trust test for you: When you hit your finger with a hammer, or your head or elbow on a hard surface, what do you say? I use to say d— most every time or something worse. Imagine my surprise when I hit my head on a cabinet door one day and yelled,” help Lord!” He renews our minds, we simply need to seek Him above all else. Until next time, “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus the perfecter of faith.” Hebrews 12:1-2
