"Change is Inevitable, Growth is Optional"

Change occurs each moment all around us: time, seasons, the rising and setting of the sun, flowers, children, and so much more. Despite it constant motion, change causes many anxious feelings to arise. My mind worries how "it will all turn out." I want to be planned and prepared for the unexpected, but despite all my worrying change comes. It comes suddenly, slowly, noticeably, and invisibly. Change is part of His master plan, edging us closer to our heavenly home.

Opposite of these fears, I have faith in God. His omnipotent powers provides the ability to see beginning to end. My view is limited to here and now. If I let it, the worries of tomorrow can cycle my mind that I miss today.

As I described these fears in my session with Dr. Julie this week, she began to sing, "Don't Worry, be happy!" She always know how to make me laugh. I see this is an important decision to make to be happy. I believe my faith and understanding will grow as I make this decision.

Change also brings the gift of growth. Dr. Julie shared this quote of her father with me, "Change is inevitable, growth is optional." Just like deciding to be happy is a choice, so is the refining change brings. I determine the outcome of a millstone or milestone. Though difficult to overcome, I would rather create a stepping stone to God than a stumbling block.

This poem describes the inevitable progression and change in life:
Around the corner I have a friend, In this great city that has no end; Yet days go by, and weeks rush on, And before I know it, a year is gone, And I never see my old friend’s face, For Life is a swift and terrible race. … But to-morrow comes—and to-morrow goes, And the distance between us grows and grows. Around the corner!—yet miles away …

(Charles Hanson Towne, “Around the Corner,” in Poems That Live Forever, sel. Hazel Felleman (1965), 128.

Seeing the fears and traps of change, I want to live for today, so it doesn't become a forgotten yesterday. This poem expresses some things I would like to share more with those I love each day:

If I knew this would be the last time I would watch you sleep, I would hug you tighter. I would plead with the Lord to protect you. If I knew this would be the last time I saw you walk out the door, I would hug and kiss you and call you back to hug and kiss you one more time. If I knew this would be the last time I would hear your voice in prayer, I would record every gesture, every look, every smile, every one of your words, So that I could listen to it later, day after day. If I knew this would be the last time, I would spend an extra minute or two to tell you, “I love you,” instead of assuming you already knew it. If I knew this would be our last time, our last moment, I would be by your side, spending the day with you instead of thinking, “Well, I’m sure other opportunities will come, so I can let this day go by.” Of course there will be a day to revise things, And we would have a second chance to do things right. Oh, of course there will be another day for us to say, “I love you.” And certainly there will be another chance to tell each other, “Can I help with anything?” But in my case, there isn’t one! I don’t have you here with me, and today is the last day we have—our farewell. Therefore I would like to say how much I love you, And I hope you never forget it. Tomorrow is not promised to anyone, young or old. Today might be your last chance to hold tight to the hand of the one you love and show all you feel. If you are waiting for tomorrow, why not do it today? Because if tomorrow never comes, you certainly will regret for the rest of your life Not having spent some extra time for a smile, a conversation, a hug, a kiss, Because you were too busy to give that person what ended up being their last wish. Then hug tight today the one you love, your friends, your family, and whisper in their ears how much you love them and want them close to you. Use your time to say, “I’m sorry,” “Please,” “Forgive me,” “Thank you,” Or even, “That was nothing,” “It’s all right,” Because if tomorrow never comes, you will not have to regret today. The past doesn’t come back, and the future might not come!
(See www.heartwhispers.net)