I’m Not The Person I Used To Be

I’ve heard it said, and I have also used the term “I’m not the person I used to be”. Well, none of us are. For some, that is a hard pill to swallow, and for others, it’s a profession of faith. If we just sit still and think, we can all replay bits and pieces of our life. I remember some of my first jobs, and as I roared through my twenties, I recall a short temper. Yes, most of us know everything by the age of twenty-five, right? Well as the years flew by I found myself slowly mellowing and now that I’m in my sixties, I probably have the patience of my parents.

I discovered that once I became “saved”, that is began following Christ, that I have been changed. Christ changed me. He kept knocking on a door that I never realized was closed to Him for a while. He patiently waited on the side of the door with no handle, as He does for everyone. He kept knocking in ways I did not recognize, yet He never gave up. He does that for everyone, and that includes you, who may be reading this article. He cares not about your past because He knows it anyway and is only interested in sharing your future with you.

I know these things, because it happened, and continues to happen to me every day. Some changes are subtle, and some are an epiphany. All we need to do is let Him in. Speak it, think it, or pray it. God hears you just the same. Keep it simple, just say” Lord, I need you today. I hear you knocking, and I am opening my door, please come in. It is that simple. In that instant, you will not be the same person you were before. That will be your moment, and only yours. All our moments are unique only to us because Jesus comes that way. He has no cookie cutter speeches, or sermons. He knows your name, and your unique situation, so He sweeps into your heart with that in mind. He will open you up to a world you may have never known existed. He will put people in your life that He planned, long before you were. They will be His feet on the ground, and His arms around your heart. Some will come and go, yet He will remain in all of the ones to come. He will allow you to temper your temper. He will gently massage your person, and personality. He will give you new eyes to see the world He has for you, new ears to hear Him even in your sleep time. He will give you a new heart to know empathy and compassion. He will even show you how to like, and love yourself, if you don’t right now. He sees in us, what we do not see in ourselves. He has a plan and a purpose you each of us. He also has a promise of eternity with Him if we want it.

My question to you now is this. Are you ready, willing, and open to His knocking? If the world has disabled you, He will enable you. The world has disabled a lot of people over the last year, yet He remains the same. A church building or service may have been suspended, closed, or halted, yet He is still alive in all of us. God is not dead, He’s alive, He’s real, and He’s still in control.  Do you want to be a different person a year from now? If you answered yes, then simply look up, reach up, but don’t give up. Take the hand that will lift you up, and remember the day that you became a different person than you used to be.

Mike Shindruk

Master’s Hand Ministry