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Segun Paul

Making The Most Of Change

One thing you can’t do without in life is growth. As long as you are alive, you must grow. As a matter of fact, if you don’t grow, you will groan and eventually begin to die off. That will not be your portion, in Jesus. So, Growth is not optional, it is mandatory. Growth places demands on us, it causes inconveniences. That is why, not every body enjoys the process of growth. Now, what do I mean by growth? It simply means change. And it affects all aspects of life; spiritual, physical, social, financial and other wise. If you want to experience growth in any area of your life, all you have to do is change; change your approach and your attitude in that area. You can’t move forward in life except you are prepared to experience daily changes. In this teaching I want to show you how to make the most of change.

ADJUST AND RESPOND TO CHANGE

The demand of growth is change and change is preceded by adjustment. As you adjust daily, you are gradually advancing. Where there is no adjustment there cannot be advancement. Now, think about this practical example of life: the way you live as an unmarried man is not the same way you live when you become married. After marriage you have to adjust your taste in order to spare money for the upkeep of your new wife and especially when children begin to arrive. Any man who refuses to adjust to the changes around his life will never grow, as a matter of fact such a man has no future. How often and how fast you respond to changes, determines how early you will arrive your future. Life places all manner of demands on us, so you have to keep adjusting and adjusting till you get to your place of glory and honour.

It is your attitude to change that determines the rate of your advancement. When changes occur around you, the best thing is to respond promptly. Don’t be slow in responding to changes. Couples who are still fighting over menial things after many years of staying together have simply refused to respond to change, and such couples never grow. But there are others who shortly after marriage have adjusted and blended. So, they keep advancing and enjoying their lives together. As long as you keep reacting to changes and asking, “What kind of life is this?” “What kind of situation is this?”, you can never be happy. You can never be happier than you respond to changes. Until you come to the point of accepting the reality of change, life will continue to pass you by. So don’t argue with change, don’t wonder at change, rather adjust; respond to change. Even trees respond to changes. During raining season, they blossom and bear fruits, but during harsh weathers like harmattan, they shed all their leaves. When the wind blows, you see trees bend as if they will fall, yet they remain firm and solid because it is all part of growth. Many people have difficulties responding to change because they enjoy where they are or what they are doing and they don’t want it stopped. But they forget that until they give up the old they can’t have the new. Until you embrace change you don’t advance. The ultimate purpose of change is advancement. That means, change never leaves you where it met you. Every change that comes your way is for your ultimate good. Another reason people react to change is because it sometimes brings detachment which could cause pain. But, don’t you see how flowers are trimmed? It’s part of the program to help them grow well and look better, though it may look like injuring them at first.  Change is therefore necessary for growth so don’t react to it. Keep responding to daily changes at home, at work, in your relationship with people, etc.

YOU CAN’T STOP CHANGE!

Another fact you must understand is that you can’t stop changes, they are natural events of life, you can only respond or react to change. Can you stop your children from growing for instance? You can’t stop it, you simply have to keep adjusting in order to be able to provide what is needed to nurture them from babyhood, to childhood and through school till they become adults. When you are unable to meet up with the demands at any of these stages, you are seen as irresponsible – refusing to respond to change. You can’t stop change, you either react or respond to it, you either complain or get excited about it. And your attitude to change is what determines your outcome.  

THE FIRST THING TO CHANGE IS YOU!

Often times, we attempt to change our situations instead of changing ourselves. Many people think, “If only my situation would change then my life would be better.” But the solution to changing our situations is in changing ourselves. Your situation will change in proportion to your personal changes. The ultimate change is changing yourself rather than changing things or people around you. Look at it this way: the tree cannot change the weather, so what it does is to change itself by adjusting to the weather. The weather will come and go but the tree will remain as long as it keeps adjusting to the changes in weather. So also your life, the joy of going through changes is in adjusting to them. Rather than wishing for your assignment to be changed, change your attitude and approach to that assignment and you will be surprised at the results you will get. Change yourself! Stop waiting for others to change their behaviour towards you, start by changing your attitude, your language and your appearance, people would naturally change towards you. When you change, your situation will change. Remember, there is no convenient change, every change will cost you something. The process of change is not sweet, but the ultimate result is rewarding.  

KNOWLEDGE IS THE BEDROCK OF CHANGE!

Change is the only evidence that you are learning. It is the true parameter for measuring knowledge. So, if you are not changing, it means you are not learning. You need to ask yourself, “Am I changing?” And if you are, how much are you changing? Think deep about your life, consider the way you have been going about the issues of your life. Are you the same old person, thinking the same old way you used to think? Is your language changing, is your attitude changing? Is your relationship with others changing? If not, it means you are not learning. It doesn’t matter how much information you have acquired, if you are not changing especially in your approach and attitude to the issues of life, you are wasting knowledge, you are not learning.

The only way not to waste knowledge is to apply it. Knowledge is not for acquisition but for application. The worth of your life is not determined by what you know but by what you do; that is what brings results. We live in the age of information, but I want to advice you to go beyond just acquiring knowledge, go for change. Each time you are reading or studying, focus your mind on the change you desire to see ultimately as you apply that information. Identify areas of your life and business where you desire to see changes and go for relevant knowledge in those areas. As you apply knowledge, you will begin to see changes

HOW TO CHANGE

In order for you to experience a change, you must be prepared to unlearn what you knew before; learn to unlearn. And to do that, you must acquire new knowledge. If what you knew yesterday is what you know today, then you can’t see changes. So, every time you encounter new knowledge, you must be prepared to drop the old and adopt the new. Many people are stagnated because they have remained tied to old knowledge. But those who embrace new knowledge are taking over in business, technology, academics, etc. The knowledge of yesterday cannot handle the challenges of today. So, if you want to keep renewing your life and your business, you have to keep learning new things, stop being rigid and insistent on maintaining your old lifestyle. There are some people who when you try to teach them something new, will tell you, “I can’t change, that is me.” If you can’t change then you can’t move forward because you will soon be out dated! 

WHAT DO I REQUIRE TO UNLEARN WHAT I HAVE LEARNED?

You need humility. To be able to admit that you have been wrong, or have behaved foolishly, or that you do not know as you ought to know, you require humility. This is part of the process of change. Only a humble man will change. A proud man cannot change because he is always bothered about his ego and so he keeps arguing, shifting blames and defending himself, all in a bid to hold unto his old ways. The essence of knowledge is to show us what we are doing wrong or inefficiently and how we can be right or how we can improve in order to get better results. So when we receive knowledge, the first thing it does is to correct us and a humble man would respond with prompt compliance, no matter the cost. So, lets forsake hard heartedness, pride, ego and headiness, lets align ourselves with new knowledge in order to move forward.

GOD IS GRACE