How To Embrace Change

I was listening to a message about embracing change at my place of fellowship. Although the message was great and insightful, I walked away with the question of how to embrace change. Yes, I was aware of the importance of doing it and why I should, but the part about how was ruminating in my mind.

In English, embrace means to hold (someone) closely in one’s arms, especially as a sign of affection. It also means to accept or support (a belief, theory, or change) willingly and enthusiastically.

Embracing change involves six principles to apply to your life:

1. Develop a Growth Mindset
2. Create A List Of Changes
3. Set Goals
4. Practice Gratitude
5. Identify The Value
6. Be Confident & Listen To Yourself

A Growth Mindset

To foster a growth mindset, a person must be open to participating, learning, and embracing new behaviors. It is an approach and willingness to grow by doing things differently than you have in the past. Facing a fear of failure is a part of this process because failure is an opportunity to grow, not the end of the road, as we think. It leads to new doors opening for you. Challenges and mistakes help you learn a new lesson of wisdom and understanding. A closed mindset is a closed door that keeps you stuck in the same place without movement.

1 Corinthians 10:13–33 KJV states, There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may bear it. This verse has significantly supported me when I felt trapped between the old and new mindsets. Some people may call it confusion, but it is a battle between the unclean spirits and the Holy Spirit. The unclean spirits are fighting to stay in control to keep you enslaved, while the Holy Spirit is cleansing your temple to grow you in wisdom and understanding by rewiring your brain with new experiences on the narrow path to our Heavenly Father. When you feel trapped when making tough decisions, remember that you are not the only one who has experienced situations like yours. Abba Yah will always provide a way of escape so that you can bear it. When I have felt the walls closing in on me, He always made a way, and I keep that in remembrance to remain encouraged as I continue to walk further into my destiny.

The List of Change

When change happens, you may reflect on the past, present, and future. Looking in the past does not always mean looking at the bad, but it can mean looking at all the good you are capable of. I reflect on what I have done in the past, which proves that I have the skills to achieve my goals for the future.

The present allows you to sit, reflect, and focus on the moments at hand. Sometimes, we are so focused on moving forward that we miss out on the enjoyable moments that change brings. The present is a time when you gain much self-awareness from your behaviors. It is a time to sit with our Heavenly Father and ask Him questions. Everything begins with a question and ends with His answer and lesson.

The future is everything you are going to walk through as you grow. It is the change that will become a lifestyle for you. One way to keep walking in that direction is to list the changes you want to make. Record your vision on paper and make it plain.

Habakkuk 2:2 KJV states And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. Writing things down so you can see them is a great way to reinforce your thoughts and behaviors. It helps bring clarity to your mind because holding on to all your thoughts can cause them to be jumbled up and even forgotten.

Set Clear Goals

Goal-setting is your action plan. The goal sets a clear direction as you journey through your process. Set the goals using SMART goals.

Smart goals are

1. Specific
2. Measurable
3. Achievable
4. Realistic
5. Timely.

Use the SMART goals sheet to understand what SMART goals are and how to create them.

Practice Gratitude

Practicing gratitude is how you find some joy in what you are doing. Change may feel frightening, nerve-wracking, and uncomfortable. Fear causes the mind to develop a negative perspective when the nervous system is overwhelmed. Fear distorts our view of what we know to be true because of how we feel.

Are you able to see any happy moments amid challenging situations? Think about a difficult time when you experienced a few smiles while working through a challenging problem.

Were you grateful to have those moments? Why or why not?

Some examples of joy are doing a puzzle, having your favorite meal, playing an instrument, singing and dancing with a friend, going to the movies, having your basic needs met of shelter, food, and water, smelling the scent of flowers, speaking with family members on the phone, sharing laughs with friends, and receiving a hug when you desperately needed it. Moments like this fill you up and help encourage you to keep.

Proverbs 17:22 states, A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. The scripture compares a merry heart to a good thing like medicine. Yah’s medicine cures His people. It restores them from being injured to being healed. When a person has a broken spirit, it dries up their bones. The production of blood is in the bones. If the bones don’t make bone marrow, it leads to a physical death. A dried-up spirit can cause physical death because a person may lose their desire and will to live. A spiritual death occurs as well, where a person is struggling to function mentally, emotionally, and physically to get through their day.

Identify The Value

Identify the value behind the change. Knowing your values gives you hope, motivation, and confidence. Values help us identify things that are important to us. Values shape and influence our morals, attitudes, normality, and behaviors. It will be hard to believe in something you do not see as valuable.

Remember that the changes you make are the steps that help you grow. Change cannot exist without doing something different. Albert Einstein stated, “Insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results.” It keeps you in a looped cycle of stagnation. What happens to stagnant water? It stinks, and we don’t want you to be stinky.

Do you see the value of the goals you set? If yes, write it down physically in your journal. If not, think about it from a different angle and cultivate a mindset for personal growth. Write everything down in your journal.

Be Confident & Listen Within

Being confident and listening to the Holy Spirit within you is the road to trust. Building confidence involves linking the concept of failure as a growth opportunity. We tend to doubt our decisions only to realize we were correct the first time. When you made poor choices in the past, recognize that you were ignorant of the knowledge you gained now. Apply the knowledge you learn to increase confidence and trust in Yah. The discipline to follow through will develop as you implement all the principles above.

Learning new skills requires trial and error and lots of self-forgiveness when mistakes occur. You got this! If you are at the end of this article, you are doing it, and I am so proud of you. We have a tendency of focusing on the loss but focus on the wins.

Identify 2–3 things you are proud of for getting done and achieving. Explain the reason you are proud of yourself.

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