WEDNESDAY'S WORD - TRANSITION - 06/26/19 Sadell Bradley - New Life Covenant Cincinnati

"Times of transition are strenuous, but I love them. They are an opportunity to purge, re-think priorities, and be intentional about new habits. We can make our new normal any way we want." - Kristin Armstrong - Athlete    Baseball hall of famer Willie Stargell said, "Life is one big transition." As I get older, I see more clearly the truth of that statement. TRANSITION is the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another.  The word is derived from the Latin transire, which means "to go across." In books or screenplays, a transition is a piece of writing that smoothly connects two topics or sections to each other. Transition in pregnancy is the final phase of the first stage of labor, where the woman progresses from seven to ten centimetres, often in less than an hour. Transition comes just before the pushing stage, and it's the hardest part of labor. The woman has a myriad of emotions. They can feel ill or vomit. This is the point at which they are ready to hurt their husbands. Are you figuratively in a birthing transition?   Life stages are our most obvious and inescapable transitions. It's hard to see ourselves going through them because the process seems gradual. Slowly but surely we change: infant, toddler, preschooler, kindergarten, elementary, middle school, high school, college, adulthood, career, marriage, parent, grandparent, great-grandparent. That's 14 transitions, and I haven't mentioned the  transitions within transitions, like moving from one job to another, changing cars or homes, or acquiring new friends. Transitions are a constant. I wonder why no one ever told us how to embrace them! Quincy Jones and Bebe Winans penned these beautiful, well known lyrics, "Everything must change, nothing stays the same. Everyone must change, no one stays the same. The young become the old, and mysteries do unfold. Cause that's the way of time. Nothing, and no one goes unchanged."    One of most notable transitions in Scripture is the saga of the Children of Israel. They are delivered into Egypt because of a famine under Joseph, then eventually are enslaved in the same place of their deliverance. After 400 years, God brings them out from their captors with great wealth. The promise of entering into Canaan and defeating the enemies there is reiterated by  Moses. "It is the LORD that goes before you. He will not leave you or forsake you Do not fear or be dismayed."  Israel transitions out of Egypt into the wilderness, but it takes generations for them to enter into the promised land. Once there, they still have to fight by faith and action for what He's promised, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."  Transitions are scary. They reveal what's in us. Will we trust God through shifting and unpredictable changes? Are we emboldened by change or do we resist it?     We would not have the Apostles if the disciples were not willing to transition from being fishermen, doctors, and tax collectors to followers of Jesus. If things stay the same in our lives, we will not learn or grow, and our faith will not be strengthened. Throughout the book of Acts, you'll observe directional shifts and movements of the Holy Spirit as He guides the Apostles to establish the New Testament Church around the world. A walk of faith requires agility and flexibility. Refusal to embrace transition leaves us stuck. Where would we be if Jesus had never transitioned from His throne on high to become a man? What if He'd refused to suffer on the cross and transition into death, burial and resurrection? Transitions, even painful ones can birth tremendous blessings, so embrace the transition you're in!