There comes a time in all of our lives when we need a change. It is sometimes a hunger inside of us that we cannot explain or sometimes we have gotten ourselves into a bad situation and we know that in order to go forward we have to change. Sometimes the change we desire is not for us but for someone else. We see that they need help, but we do not know how to help them. We often do the only thing we can do; we pray. We pray that the person will change and decide to make better choices. We pray diligently for the person for weeks or even years. Sometimes we see immediate results but other times we do not see results at all. When we do not see the results that we want, we question our faith. We start to believe that God is not hearing us or that He is not answering our prayers.

However, the change within anyone has to be wanted. Major life changes usually do not happen over night. I am not saying that God is not capable of changing someone in an instant, but He often does not work like that. Sometimes God has to allow us to experience a terribly difficult time to help us realize that we need a change in our lives. We have to get so low that our only option is to look up. When we get to that point God is always waiting patiently for us. Then and only then can the change occur. When we reach the point that we feel we have no other options, we are ripe for God to communicate with us and help us get our lives back on track. The same can be said for the people that we are praying for. We can pray for them, and we should pray for them, but they have to get to the point that they are ready for their lives to change.

Change is scary, and we tend to resist it because we are afraid of what we do not know. We sometimes mistakenly think that what we know is safer than what we do not know. We can become stuck in a life that we are not meant to live. When we are open to change and our lives begin to improve, we realize how desperately we needed the change. The more changes we make the better we feel, and we want those good feelings to continue. You see, even though God is a miraculous God, He wants us to do some of the work for ourselves. That includes changing our lives. He can and will greatly assist us when we decide to make changes in our lives, but that change must begin within each of us. We have to have faith that change can occur. We have to have faith that God will lead us to and through the change. We have to want the change to occur and be open to hearing the voice of God.

So, if you are desperately searching for a change, look to God. He has been waiting for you to get to this point. He will guide you and help you make the changes you need to make in your life. He will also place other people in your path to help you. If you are praying for someone else to have a change in his or her life, do not give up. Keep praying, but realize that the person has to want the change to occur. When they are ready for the change, God will be there waiting for them and it will happen. We just need to continue to pray that God will lead us in the right direction. Change will come when we are ready for it. It will bring us so much joy and peace and PEACE MATTERS.

~Dan~