Self Mastery – Accept Change

Jesus had a plan for Peter’s life. Peter was settled in a career at the time of meeting Jesus. He was skilled in his career as a fisherman. He was pretty prosperous and also well known in his community as a fisherman. Yet, when Jesus called him, he immediately responded and walked away from the familiarity of his present skill. He was told that Jesus would make him a fisher of men. This was completely different to what he was used to or trained for. It required a decision from Peter to make this change. He could have said no, and then remained a fisherman without ever experiencing the calling of God on his life. As a fisherman, there were not many rules on his manner of living or the way he spoke. His job called for him being away from people and only catching fish in a great big sea. Interaction with people was limited and he could avoid it if he wanted to. This change, required him to allow God to change him and he would have to have mastery over his personality in order to fulfill the new call on his life. Peter rose to the challenge and became one of the greatest Apostles.

In our own lives, change is a constant. There are demands on our lives and many times we have to leave the familiar in order for us to fulfill the calling of God on our lives. We may be in a job for many years and suddenly we are retrenched. Perhaps there are not many jobs similar to the job we were doing and we are forced to change to a line of work we were never trained for or have a skill in doing. We have to make a decision to make the necessary changes in order for us to earn a living to take care of our family. We have to deny ourselves and rise to the challenge of change. Only the Holy Spirit can come in and give us the courage and strength to make the change.

Likewise, in a church aspect. We attend church and we are comfortable with coming in every Sunday and listening to the message. At the end of the service, we leave and we are fine with that. Until, one day, we are approached to ask to serve in a particular area of ministry. We are completely uncomfortable with that. It is unfamiliar territory to us and we are uncomfortable at first, but as time goes and we fulfill the calling, we find that we were called to ministry and the grace on our lives begins to increase and intensify. It is the giftings and callings of God. Embrace change, it is actually a part of the work of the Holy Spirit to change us from inside out. It is rewarding and fulfilling.