Keep The Faith magazine - Britain's leading publication about Black faith

Over the years, a lot of people have shaped my life in many different ways, both positively and negatively. This summer, I met a friend I hadn’t spoken to for over 20 years, and learned how she had turned stumbling blocks into stepping stones; crisis situations into opportunities for ministry, and battles into victory. From her inspirational testimony, I was challenged to grow and change in areas of my life that I had previously been content with.

Jesus was and is the greatest change agent in the history of the world. As we follow Him, we discover He wants to change our lives and use us to change others. In the momentous spiritual event of conversion, God performs major changes in us. We become ‘new creations’ in Christ (Luke 5:27-39 and 6:1-11). 

Conversion is a big event - our individual tipping-point.

A tipping-point is change that happens not gradually but at one dramatic moment. The term first came into use in the 1970s to describe residential segregation caused by the flight of Whites to the suburbs from old American cities. When the number of African-Americans moving into the neighbourhood reached 20%, the population ‘tipped’ and Whites fled. Another example of a tipping point is the story of Hush Puppies, a very popular brand known for their comfortable suede shoes. In 1994, Hush Puppies were getting ready to discontinue the line - after 30 years of production - after selling just 30,000 pairs of shoes. In the same year, a small group of fashionable youths decided to start wearing Hush Puppies, not to promote them, but because they were unfashionable. Hush Puppies executives learned that Hush Puppies had suddenly become ‘hip’ and ‘cool’ in Manhattan. By 1995, fashion designers wanted to use Hush Puppies in their upcoming fashion shows, and sales went from 30,000 in 1994 to 430,000 pairs in 1995, to over 1.5 million pairs sold in 1996. Hush Puppies had ‘tipped’.

Jesus created the biggest tipping-point the world has ever seen. When He was here on earth, He was accused of turning the world upside down with His ministry, and was resented by the religious and civil establishment. The changes He brought impacted them personally, by impacting their society, their theology and their livelihood. The key issue raised by His opponents was the legitimacy of the changes He provoked. "What right do You have to change things?" (Luke 9:14). Jesus defended His right to bring change, by painting four short word pictures of a doctor, a bridegroom, a garment and a wineskin.
From the image of a doctor, we learn:

Change is helpful. Sometimes change is necessary for the greater good. Sometimes there is a need for change, because the need has changed.

From the image of the bridegroom, we learn:

Change is seasonal. Knowing the season you are in, and flowing with the season you are in, is one of the most important keys to rightly processing change (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 11).

Change is emotional. When dealing with important issues, we should not let our feelings or the feelings of others determine whether or not we implement a particular change. Instead, we should look at the fruit that change will produce, whether positive or negative, and we need to be aware of the emotions that will accompany that change, in order to work it out in a healthy, productive, non-destructive way.

Change is controversial. The greater the degree or speed of change, the greater the controversy. Meeting the needs of people is more important than catering to their preferences! Both old and new wine are beverages capable of quenching thirst, and a truly thirsty person can drink either one!

From the image of the garment and the wineskin, we learn:

Change is inevitable. Resisting change will not keep it from happening; everything living changes. You cannot keep cloth from shrinking or wineskins from expanding. Some changes cannot be partial; they must be total. You cannot put new wine into old wineskins; tradition must never be valued more than truth!

Change is personal. Ultimately, each of us has to make up our mind when to change. For example, “The lily in the pond is doubling in size every day. In thirty days it will cover the entire pond, killing all creatures living in it. The farmer does not want that to happen, but being busy, he decides to postpone cutting back the plant until it covers half the pond. The question is: on what day will the lily cover half the pond? The answer is: on the 29th day, leaving the farmer just one day to save his pond.”

The only thing in the universe that does not change is God and His Word. It will never change for us; we must change in response to it, before it is too late!

Rev Stephen Brooks is National Development Manager for Excell 3 (National Black Boys Can Association). Visit www.blackboyscan.co.uk