In preparation for a new year or in order to begin another year, people practice different ways to symbolize ‘forsaking their old habits and decision for change.’ But a change has to do with our egg-sized heart. The Bible calls it either seed of deception or the temple of the Holy Spirit. External signs does not affect the heart till it is transformed and regenerated. The heart brings either pains or peace to our body. Repentance can avert the pain and disaster of life. Settling or resettling our relationship with God can result a new perspective of life.
Change of Allegiance
It is a shift from what once we believed in. The Lord Jesus called for repentance (Matt 4:17). It is not a change of religion. It is fundamentally a shift of allegiance. For instance, a shift of allegiance from a mountain god to Jesus Christ. It is a change of faith from a religious belief to the Truth, the Way and the Life. The Lord Jesus did not preach about a religious conversion but change of heart. Repentance has to do with inner stance of our hearts. It is foundational ground of eternity.
Change of mind comes from a sense of regret or even remorse on account of sin. It refers to change of one's mind and purpose of life as a result of knowledge where remission of sin is assured. The process involves a true sense of one's own guilt and sinfulness, an apprehension of God's mercy in Christ, an actual hatred of sin and turning to God. It leads to a persistent endeavor for a holy life in a walking with God, obeying His instruction. The true penitent is conscious of guilt, and of helplessness. Repentance comprehends not only such a sense of sin, but also an apprehension of mercy. It is the principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ in order to offer true happiness and eternal life.
Change of Food Habit
Repentance affects what we were doing with our mouths. The mouth eats, chews and drinks after the desire of our hearts. The Bible and medical science agree that food habit destroys our body including lungs and liver, damaging life systems and shortening our longevity. Early people (in the Bible) lived hundreds of years comparing with modern short lived life. Food habit makes a basic difference. Unrestraint food habit costs both physical and economic life. Drinking habit amounts to quarrel, fights and violence. God wants us to live in peace, long and wealthy as well. Spiritual issues is ‘it leads us to sin against God.’ May 2011 be a year free from unhealthy food habits.
Change of Addictive Habit
Repentance involves a heart free from addictive behavior. It relates to addiction of drugs, substance, liquor, smoking, chewing and even smelling. It refers to whatever boosts and kicks us. Addictive behavior goes far beyond what comes into our mouth and nose. It is psychological process. Vulgar habits, gossiping and slandering, destructive and damaging tongues, and other manipulative behaviors all relate to addiction. These are the key strategies that Satan and his agents use to destroy human qualities. Your living room is smelly of something, the premises and corners of buildings are smeared and destroyed with bad spits, and our public places are not safe and shabby with human behaviors. New Year must have a bearing of better human quality.
Change of Thought
Thought deals with the inner intention of our heart. It is manufacturing workshop of good or bad. It is the underlying and engineering wing of our life, the decisive function of life. Words are the bullets of the thought. Our action is the result of the thought. The content of a person is the thought being the intellectual and mental activity center that results ideas. It is a complexity. Our thought profusely travels faster than anything else. Repentance has to do with refinery, reforming and cleansing process of thought. Thought can produce destruction and subversive elements. It can kill or it can build. Paul expressed that he once thought like a child but he gave up the old pattern of thought once he became mature. A happy person is who lives a baby heart – clean and constructive heart. Thought is the first room for repentance.
Change of Speech
The Bible talks about new tongue and people view it as speaking in a different language. Of course, it happens. But a new tongue is basically a change from negative to positive vocabulary, from destructive to constructive terms, and from hurtful words to healing communication. A person filled with the love of God speaks out healing words. For instance, curse becomes blessing. In process, we feel sorry for what we have said. We now resolve to employ positive words because every bad word has equation of good word. The body dies but words never die. Forgiveness comes on the basis of apology and confession. And forgiveness alone can heal up the wounds of words. A rethought positive word is better than many destructive words. Repentance truly affects the language of human vocabularies. The new year makes sense when it has its bearing in our communication.
Change of Action
Action refers to our deed more in a visible scenario. In our current society, ‘action’ refers more to beating and destructive forces. Action is the result of our thought and inner design. It relates to the movement of our hands and feet. Action is also taken indirectly through the second or third person or party. Broadly, action refers to the outcome of the decision of our heart. Action can be social, moral, personal, physical or political. God condemns any action that is related to violence. On the other hand, action has positive bearing when services are rendered to human needs. The Lord Jesus Christ is full of good action. Mother Teresa is remembered because of her good works. Human world needs good action like relief work, protection, care, prayer, mercy, justice and honesty, and healthy communication. Good people is an appropriate term to substitute Christians.
Change of Attitude
Attitude corresponds with our inner and underlying thought. It is highly a psychological term that practically constitutes a human life. It is how a person relates and connects with his surrounding, environment and horizontal community. Categorically an attitude has two aspects: positive or negative. A person of negative attitude looks at his world from pessimistic perspective while a positive person viewing his world in an optimistic mindset. It is the worldview of how we live with each other in our human world. The projection and communication of a person is the index of one’s attitude. In the Bible, the attitude of people changed when they shifted their allegiance to Jesus Christ. The attitude of Zacchaeus drastically changed when Jesus interacted with him. Our attitude hurts, harms and destroys others. It is a time for us to examine the type of attitude that we live with in our family, church and society. Repentance changes, reforms and redirects our attitude. The need is a healthy attitude.
Change of Perspective
It has to do with the foundation of life and future. For some people, it is money, some promotion, regret, achievement, and higher ladder like wealth, education or other inner motives. The Bible proves that many strategic people considered giving their lives and life goal to God. Doing this, there is no mistake or regret. To name some of them, young man Moses, David, Joshua, Paul and the like. In modern mission, William Carey, Hudson Taylor, and W. Clark, and now Billy Graham. God met them with a proper and new perspective when repented and gave their lives to Him.
Repentance means an objective resolution, correction of a wrong life route you are considering, and resetting of life vision on strong foundation. For instance, correction of life philosophy, choosing a right book to read, decision for Christian marriage, rerouting to a life of salt and light, withdrawing from destructive year plan, forsaking easy and cheap lifestyle, and saying ‘goodbye’ to corruptible ways of life. Repentance touches all these life-nerves. Repentance is like a firm foundation on which your 2011 ladder stands you plan to climb. It is also like a geometric center for drawing equidistant circles. Furthermore, it is like a primary root which determines the magnitude of the tree. Repentance brings happiness, new life, and new hope if you are willing to says ‘Yes’ to Jesus Christ when he invites us saying “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”
Change of Allegiance
It is a shift from what once we believed in. The Lord Jesus called for repentance (Matt 4:17). It is not a change of religion. It is fundamentally a shift of allegiance. For instance, a shift of allegiance from a mountain god to Jesus Christ. It is a change of faith from a religious belief to the Truth, the Way and the Life. The Lord Jesus did not preach about a religious conversion but change of heart. Repentance has to do with inner stance of our hearts. It is foundational ground of eternity.
Change of mind comes from a sense of regret or even remorse on account of sin. It refers to change of one's mind and purpose of life as a result of knowledge where remission of sin is assured. The process involves a true sense of one's own guilt and sinfulness, an apprehension of God's mercy in Christ, an actual hatred of sin and turning to God. It leads to a persistent endeavor for a holy life in a walking with God, obeying His instruction. The true penitent is conscious of guilt, and of helplessness. Repentance comprehends not only such a sense of sin, but also an apprehension of mercy. It is the principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ in order to offer true happiness and eternal life.
Change of Food Habit
Repentance affects what we were doing with our mouths. The mouth eats, chews and drinks after the desire of our hearts. The Bible and medical science agree that food habit destroys our body including lungs and liver, damaging life systems and shortening our longevity. Early people (in the Bible) lived hundreds of years comparing with modern short lived life. Food habit makes a basic difference. Unrestraint food habit costs both physical and economic life. Drinking habit amounts to quarrel, fights and violence. God wants us to live in peace, long and wealthy as well. Spiritual issues is ‘it leads us to sin against God.’ May 2011 be a year free from unhealthy food habits.
Change of Addictive Habit
Repentance involves a heart free from addictive behavior. It relates to addiction of drugs, substance, liquor, smoking, chewing and even smelling. It refers to whatever boosts and kicks us. Addictive behavior goes far beyond what comes into our mouth and nose. It is psychological process. Vulgar habits, gossiping and slandering, destructive and damaging tongues, and other manipulative behaviors all relate to addiction. These are the key strategies that Satan and his agents use to destroy human qualities. Your living room is smelly of something, the premises and corners of buildings are smeared and destroyed with bad spits, and our public places are not safe and shabby with human behaviors. New Year must have a bearing of better human quality.
Change of Thought
Thought deals with the inner intention of our heart. It is manufacturing workshop of good or bad. It is the underlying and engineering wing of our life, the decisive function of life. Words are the bullets of the thought. Our action is the result of the thought. The content of a person is the thought being the intellectual and mental activity center that results ideas. It is a complexity. Our thought profusely travels faster than anything else. Repentance has to do with refinery, reforming and cleansing process of thought. Thought can produce destruction and subversive elements. It can kill or it can build. Paul expressed that he once thought like a child but he gave up the old pattern of thought once he became mature. A happy person is who lives a baby heart – clean and constructive heart. Thought is the first room for repentance.
Change of Speech
The Bible talks about new tongue and people view it as speaking in a different language. Of course, it happens. But a new tongue is basically a change from negative to positive vocabulary, from destructive to constructive terms, and from hurtful words to healing communication. A person filled with the love of God speaks out healing words. For instance, curse becomes blessing. In process, we feel sorry for what we have said. We now resolve to employ positive words because every bad word has equation of good word. The body dies but words never die. Forgiveness comes on the basis of apology and confession. And forgiveness alone can heal up the wounds of words. A rethought positive word is better than many destructive words. Repentance truly affects the language of human vocabularies. The new year makes sense when it has its bearing in our communication.
Change of Action
Action refers to our deed more in a visible scenario. In our current society, ‘action’ refers more to beating and destructive forces. Action is the result of our thought and inner design. It relates to the movement of our hands and feet. Action is also taken indirectly through the second or third person or party. Broadly, action refers to the outcome of the decision of our heart. Action can be social, moral, personal, physical or political. God condemns any action that is related to violence. On the other hand, action has positive bearing when services are rendered to human needs. The Lord Jesus Christ is full of good action. Mother Teresa is remembered because of her good works. Human world needs good action like relief work, protection, care, prayer, mercy, justice and honesty, and healthy communication. Good people is an appropriate term to substitute Christians.
Change of Attitude
Attitude corresponds with our inner and underlying thought. It is highly a psychological term that practically constitutes a human life. It is how a person relates and connects with his surrounding, environment and horizontal community. Categorically an attitude has two aspects: positive or negative. A person of negative attitude looks at his world from pessimistic perspective while a positive person viewing his world in an optimistic mindset. It is the worldview of how we live with each other in our human world. The projection and communication of a person is the index of one’s attitude. In the Bible, the attitude of people changed when they shifted their allegiance to Jesus Christ. The attitude of Zacchaeus drastically changed when Jesus interacted with him. Our attitude hurts, harms and destroys others. It is a time for us to examine the type of attitude that we live with in our family, church and society. Repentance changes, reforms and redirects our attitude. The need is a healthy attitude.
Change of Perspective
It has to do with the foundation of life and future. For some people, it is money, some promotion, regret, achievement, and higher ladder like wealth, education or other inner motives. The Bible proves that many strategic people considered giving their lives and life goal to God. Doing this, there is no mistake or regret. To name some of them, young man Moses, David, Joshua, Paul and the like. In modern mission, William Carey, Hudson Taylor, and W. Clark, and now Billy Graham. God met them with a proper and new perspective when repented and gave their lives to Him.
Repentance means an objective resolution, correction of a wrong life route you are considering, and resetting of life vision on strong foundation. For instance, correction of life philosophy, choosing a right book to read, decision for Christian marriage, rerouting to a life of salt and light, withdrawing from destructive year plan, forsaking easy and cheap lifestyle, and saying ‘goodbye’ to corruptible ways of life. Repentance touches all these life-nerves. Repentance is like a firm foundation on which your 2011 ladder stands you plan to climb. It is also like a geometric center for drawing equidistant circles. Furthermore, it is like a primary root which determines the magnitude of the tree. Repentance brings happiness, new life, and new hope if you are willing to says ‘Yes’ to Jesus Christ when he invites us saying “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”
Dr. P. Dozo, Dimapur
