#TheImportanceOfIntimacyWithGod #TheInconsistencyBetweenExternalAndInternal #ThePowerOfInternalChange
Humans are fond of changes, both women and men alike. Some are fascinated by physical changes to their appearance, such as removing wrinkles from their faces, reducing excess fat in the jawline, altering their smiles, increasing or decreasing bust sizes, enhancing hips and buttocks, reducing abdominal fat, or even changing their skin color. All these are external changes, but deep down, in our genetic core, we remain the same. Our genes, the most internal aspect of our identity, have not changed. Even when we have children, they inherit physical traits that we've modified in our bodies. Why? Because that change was external, not internal.
Often, we try to change from the outside in. We attempt to change ourselves, our circumstances, others, and even the world around us. We strive to change people, be it our spouse, our children, or those in our environment. We long for transformations in our surroundings and hope that governments will reform, and corruption will vanish. But perhaps without realizing it, we also engage in acts of corruption (albeit on a smaller scale), and that doesn't produce the desired change.
Even in church, when we send offerings to those in need or participate in workshops like "The Power of One," we do so with the hope of impacting people and changing the way they live. Likewise, for ourselves, we attend workshops with the expectation that, over time, we will see changes in our lives. However, this is an attempt to change the external to fix the internal, without addressing the root cause: our way of thinking. Sometimes, we perform actions like tithing for external appearances without a clear internal conviction of why we do it.
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Jesus said, "But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander" (Matthew 15:18-19, NTV).
Everything we are is reflected within us. Our words, actions, and ways of doing things stem from what we carry in our hearts. If we seek to make a change, we should start from within, by changing our way of thinking. That's why the essence of workshops, seminars, and gatherings is to provoke an internal change in each of us that reflects in the external world.
Even if you don't change your external appearance, if you change internally, future generations will inherit the fruit of that change. However, this internal change can only be triggered by God, through intimacy with Him. His transformation always originates from within to the outside.
This article was written by Víctor Preza and is based on the sermon of September 30, 2023. The power of internal change is a force that can impact our lives and the world around us in profound and meaningful ways. As we seek change from within, we can aspire to a better future for ourselves and generations to come.
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