With a face radiant of passion, a spirit of humility, and eyes flooded with tears of sincerity, my wife looks at me and says,
“I just want to see women transformed.”
Christine M. Hairston
We were talking about her women’s prayer call that she hosts every Wednesday. This past Wednesday’s call went exceptionally well (I wasn’t on the call of course, but she told me all about it). She was very encouraged and motivated to keep it going. She began pouring out her heart to me about the things she wanted. Not one of them included fame, to be a big name, or any of the usual eg0-feeding stuff. She only expressed a desire to be obedient to what she felt her calling was and to see women transformed.
Absent from her expressed desires were notable “church” words: blessed, favored, anointed, prosperous, etc. As she said it again, “I just want to see women transformed,” in that moment it’s like a saw a vision and heard God throw His hands up like, “Finally! Someone who gets it! Someone who’s finally speaking my language!” Hold that thought…
“You’re living the same day over and over. How can you continue to do that and not want change?”
Chynna C. Smith
A former student and now friend of mine said this on the same day my wife and I spoke about the prayer call. We were observing the behavior and the repetitive life cycles of people when she lifted this statement. It struck a chord with me. How many of us are living the same day over and over? Aren’t you tired yet? Don’t get me wrong, some things will be redundant – we have to get up and go to work. Doesn’t matter how tired I am, Brooklyn and Bailey will be awake and ready to go AT LEAST by 7am. I get it. But when can our mindset change? When can our worldview change? How can our approach change?
God may not always be quick to change our situations but I believe He’s most quick to change us. Did Jesus die for our situations? No, He died for us. He places His bet on humanity. That’s where His blood, His life, and His love, is invested. That’s why I believe He’s chiefly concerned with working on us. Christine’s number one desire with the prayer call is to see women changed aligns itself so perfectly with my conviction for ministry too – transformation. God is immutable – He doesn’t change. Although He doesn’t change, ironically, everything He called forth and ordained in creation does. He’s the author of time, and by its nature, time transforms. It changes. There is no repetition in time. There will never be another Saturday June 22, 2019, ever! All signs in life point to transformation and change. Yet, some of us are still living the same day over and over and over.
I believe it’s time to wake up from the coma of sameness. It’s time to change. But the change we’re calling for isn’t about situations and external factors, but yourself and your heart. It’s time to take the inward journey and consider how can I transform and be changed. It’s time for a work of the heart. And here’s the news of it all, because you are a part of YOUR situation therefore, when YOU change, your situation by default has to change as well. Let your mind be changed. Let your vision be changed. And finally, let your heart be changed.
I pray we all develop appetites to change.
P.S. Check out my wife’s prayer call every Wednesday at 10pm! See the flyer below for more information!
