God Understands You Can’t Change Overnight

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES Life's Healing Choices - The Beatitudes

God Understands You Can't Change Overnight By Rick Warren — Aug 14, 2016 “Put on your new nature, created to be like God — truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:24 NLT, second edition). When God helps you grow spiritually, he doesn’t just snap his fingers so that it happens instantly. He does it incrementally. When God wants to make a mushroom, he takes six hours, but when he wants to make an oak tree, he takes 60 years.  Do you want to be a mushroom or an oak tree? The Holy Spirit will make changes in your life far beyond anything you thought possible, but they’re not going to happen overnight. When Saddleback Church did our “Decade of Destiny,” my prayer was that, through the work of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God and with support from our small groups, our church would become more mature, more Christlike, and further along in our purpose 10 years from that point. My prayer is the same for you, that in the next decade, you would grow in spiritual maturity and Christ-likeness and purpose. I want you to be stronger emotionally, physically, spiritually, psychologically, and financially, but you’ve got to be intentional about it. The Bible says, “Put on your new nature, created to be like God — truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:24 NLT, second edition). This is how we become more like Jesus. We throw off the old things and the old ways that keep us from getting to know Christ and becoming like him, and we put on our new selves with the help of the Holy Spirit. We let God do his work in us — no matter how long it takes. “As the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him” (2 Corinthians 3:18b TLB). PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over Why is it important to have goals? What are your goals for the next 10 years of your life? How do you want God to work in your life? Pray, and ask him to help you trust as he works in his time to fulfill his purpose for you. Our Gift: Life's Healing Choices Study Kit Based on Jesus’ very own words in the Beatitudes, this DVD and workbook guides you through eight critical choices that every wounded believer must make in order to experience wholeness, happiness, and healing. These essential decisions will build your trust in God even when you don’t understand his plans and your circumstances look hopeless. LEARN MORE Complete Audio Series (Purchase) Includes all complete sermons from the Rick Warren Life's Healing Choices - The Beatitudes teaching series. LEARN MORE Series Summary Message 1: ​​The Reality Choice Message 2: ​​​​​​​​​​The Hope You Need For Change Message 3: ​​​Letting Go and Letting God Message 4: ​​The Transformation Choice Message 5: ​The Growth Choice Message 6: ​​​The Sharing Choice Message 7: Breaking Free From Abuse PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at rickwarren.org. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He’s the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including "The Purpose Driven Church" and "The Purpose Driven Life," read by more than 100 million people in 137 languages. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered across America. This devotional © 2016 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences  |  Unsubscribe