How to Find Biblical Joy When You Face Life Changes

“We can endure change when we ponder God’s permanence.” Max Lucado

I have had a tough time adjusting to change for as long as I can remember. Even the good, exciting, or fun changes were often hard for me. I would battle anxiety as I anticipated what was ahead and was often tempted to hold on to what was familiar. As I have been growing older, I have become more in tune and aware of how I tend to react to change, and I have been learning the best ways to prepare myself for what is ahead.

One of the most important things I have learned is that it is so helpful for me to spend time in prayer, asking God for specific things as I walk through life’s changes. I have learned to ask God to give me his peace as I approach the change, for his extra amount of grace as I walk through the change, and then for his perspective, and that he would show me his purpose as I adjust to the change. I cannot tell you how amazing it has been to walk through some of life’s biggest and hardest changes this way. Looking ahead and preparing myself mentally and spiritually has been so helpful.

Yes, there have been tears and hard days. That is a normal emotion we will experience as we leave a season behind. But ultimately, God has walked me through some of life’s biggest changes: The weddings of both of my children and coming home to an empty house, having to make the difficult decision to leave a church that we’d been in for years, and then having to find a new church, and walking through the experience of sitting by my dad’s bedside while he slowly slipped away and learning what life is like after one of your parents passes away. God has walked me through these changes in a way I never imagined was possible.

I know that there are many more changes ahead. Some will be exciting, and some will be hard, but I know that if I remember how faithful God has been in each change I have faced so far, I will be okay in the future.

So, how can we find biblical joy when we face life changes?

Verses to Help You When You Face Life Changes

Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

When we face life changes, the only thing that will help us have some stability is knowing what God’s Word says and choosing to cling to his truths. Deuteronomy 31 reminds us that the Lord our God never leaves us and is always with us. There is comfort in knowing that the God who has allowed and ordained the change is walking you through the change as well.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens….”

Our life is often described by what “season” we are in. There are some seasons that we might be happy to have end, but most of the time, at least for me, there are mixed emotions when a season ends because it often means that relationships or people we have become familiar with might change. But the Word of God reminds us that there is a time for everything. Seasons end. Relationships change. People move on and grow up. That is the way life is, and it is how God planned it to be. God is the only thing in our life that will never leave or change.

Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

We serve a Savior who is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is the one and only familiar and stable thing in our lives. That means that when our loved one dies, God is the same, and he is there to comfort and walk you through your grief. When our children leave the nest, God is the same, and he is there to comfort you and give you purpose. When you move from one city to another or from one job to another, God is the same and is there to walk you through the changes. He is also happy to introduce you to what he has called you to do and your purpose in this new season.

What Good Comes When You Face Life Changes

• Change provides us with an opportunity to rely on God and experience his grace in times of need. It also allows us to experience and see God’s faithfulness as he meets our needs spiritually, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.
• Change allows us to learn how to walk with God and trust him in unknown territory. It gives us an opportunity to know and experience him in a new way as we lean on him during what can be a time of uncertainty.
• Change can be used to launch us into unfamiliar territory and new and exciting ministry opportunities. When we turn to God and ask him what he wants us to do in a new season, we have the opportunity to watch him work in ways we never imagined. There are new people to serve, share the gospel with, and new people to show the love of Christ to.

Find Biblical Joy by Focusing on God

1. Thank Him for Who He Is:

Father, thank you for being an immutable God that never changes. You never change who you are; your attributes are the same from before the beginning of time into eternity, your character never changes, your plans never change, and your promises never change. That gives me such comfort as I live in a constantly changing world and face so many seasons of change.

2. Thank Him for His Faithfulness:

Father, thank you for your faithfulness in my life through every change that I have walked through. You have calmed my fears, comforted my heart, and gently ushered me into each season, giving me peace, purpose, and joy.

3. Thank Him for His Promises:

Father, thank you for your promises that tell me you will never ever change, that you are always with me, that you know what is best for me, and that you are a good, good Father. Please help me always cling to those promises, especially in the hardest of life’s changes.

4. Thank Him for His Provisions:

Father, thank you for providing me with all that I need for life and godliness. Thank you that, even in uncertain times and when change is hard, you provide the strength and grace that I need to walk through it all in a way that glorifies and honors you and that your Word is a guidebook on how to walk through this life and experience biblical joy.

To learn more about how to choose biblical joy, check out my book “Everyday Prayers for Joy”!

For weekly encouragement on how to choose biblical joy in all circumstances, subscribe to “Choose Biblical Joy Today”

This article is part of a series by Gina Smith on biblical joy. Here are more of her articles:

How to Find Biblical Joy When You Have Been Treated Unfairly

How to Find Biblical Joy When You Battle Depression

Finding Biblical Joy in Loneliness

How to Find Biblical Joy When Life Doesn’t Look the Way You Thought it Would

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