6 Lessons Learned From Change

As most of you can testify from your own experience, God has different plans for us in different seasons of our lives. He says in His Word that “there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven” (Eccl. 3:1, NIV).

The same holds true in publishing. Nearly *10 years ago, God gave us the vision and direction for a devotional magazine that would increase women’s hunger for Him and help them get to know Him more intimately through teaching articles, firsthand testimonies of His power, and profiles of women past and present who have made a difference in His kingdom. You know that magazine as SpiritLed Woman.

Today God is saying: “‘Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?'” (Is. 43:18-19). The “new thing” is to discontinue publishing the magazine in print format in order to focus our resources on producing similar material for the increasingly popular medium of the Internet. So although you will no longer receive a hard copy in the mail, you will still be able to go to our Web site (spiritledwoman.com) and enjoy the same spiritual “food” you have come to expect from us. You will also be able to read a special section in Charisma magazine that addresses topics of interest to you.

Though God says we are to forget the former things, I believe it is worthwhile at this juncture to consider what we have learned during the last 10 years. We’ve heard from many of you that our articles have impacted you and encouraged you to fulfill God’s plans for your lives. So the magazine has borne much spiritual fruit that will remain. Let’s review:

You can be whatever God calls you to be. We learned that God uses women to impact His kingdom whom the world defines as ineligible. Examples of such women convinced us not to allow the enemy to count us out.

There is no more fulfilling way to live than pursuing God’s purpose for your life. We learned that each one of us is called to make a difference for God within our sphere of influence and that because we may be the only expression of Jesus and His love many people will ever encounter, we must make an effort to represent Him well.

There are no limitations in God. When God’s assignments seem overwhelming, we are often tempted to think of all the reasons we can’t obey. But we learned that when we become “God-conscious” rather than “self-conscious,” we can accomplish all God asks because of His great power that is “at work within us” (Eph. 3:20). We can move beyond ourselves into the realm in which He dwells, where all things are possible.

God is in the storms. We learned that when we obey God, we may encounter storms. But they can be used by God to build our character and take us to a new place in Him.

Failure leads to victory. We learned that while fulfilling God’s assignments, we will make mistakes, and the enemy will use our failures to try to discourage us. But failure is simply a reminder that we cannot do anything worthwhile of ourselves. By repenting and relying on God’s grace and strength, we will live a life of victory.

When God calls you to do something, you must trust Him. We learned that when seasons change and God gives us a new direction, we must step out in faith to obey. None of us knows the end from the beginning, but if we take hold of His plans for our lives, we will see Him do mighty works through us!

 *Editor’s note: This article was written in 2007.