Resistance to Change

“But I don’t wanna change schools! I love my school!” my son Asher objected as we brought up the idea for the first time. “Why do I need to? I’ll never see my friends again!”

After finding out that he’d gotten a spot in a fantastic magnet school in town for the following school year, we knew it would be a great fit for Asher. He’d be more challenged, there would be other boys who he could relate to better and who had similar interests, and he and his sister would be able to be at the same school for longer (that was a huge plus for two exhausted parents who felt like taxi drivers some days).

Our tender-hearted boy had never been great at change; he’s the kid whose favorite color had been orange since he was old enough to say the word and hadn’t wavered for the following nine years (and counting). But we wanted him to have ownership over this thing that would feel like a huge life change for him. 

We only had a few weeks to accept the spot, so we had many casual conversations over the course of those weeks about some of the great things about the school and what an exciting adventure it could be, trying our best not to sound too pushy or manipulative. Then one night, being the logical, calculated boy that he is, Asher said over dinner, “I’ve made a decision about where I want to go next year. I want to try the new school.”

My mama heart was overjoyed. I was so proud of him for being courageous to try something scary and so out of his comfort zone. Then my train of thought quickly turned to how many times I had fought so incredibly hard against change that had come up in my own life. 

The Book of Jonah and Running from Change 

I recently read through the book of Jonah after hearing a pastor teach on the story. It’s one of those biblical books that can be easy to rush through, especially since I had heard it a hundred times growing up in church. The whole “swallowed by a big fish and spit out on the shore” thing can make it feel almost fairy tale-like and far removed from the realities of my own life. But boy did I ever see myself in Jonah during this fresh read through!

Jonah was a well-known prophet in his day, and only two verses into the book, we hear God give him directions: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me” (Jonah 1:2). I would assume that a guy who hears DIRECTLY from God would jump at the chance to do what He instructed, but the very next verse is one of the most human things I have ever read: “But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord” (v. 3). 

Not only did Jonah not say “Sure thing, Lord!”, but he physically ran (and sailed) as far away as he could, as fast as he could. As if the God of the universe wouldn’t know where he went! 

Jonah knew all about the Ninevites; they had been enemies of the Jewish people, and animosity abounded on both sides. Although it doesn’t explicitly say it in the text, it seems clear that Jonah’s heart was initially unwilling to change toward the people that God was calling him to help save.

When God Calls Us to Change 

I may not have ever paid for passage on a ship to run away from God or needed to be swallowed by a fish to get the message, but I have fought tooth and nail to resist change in my own life, even change that I knew I was being called to by God Himself.

When I got married, God’s call to selfless love and putting someone before myself was hugely eye-opening. That certainly didn’t come naturally and went against everything I naturally wanted to do. It caused destruction in our marriage that was only saved after fully surrendering all of it to God.

When my husband and I felt called by God to quit our jobs and pursue ministry full-time while having two little ones under two, it was a step that felt way too risky to take. We resisted for a good two years before we realized that the rising level of discontentment in my husband’s job seemed to correlate with the fact that we had been running away from what God was calling us to do.

When our ministry panned out to look like playing concerts all over the country with our two kids in tow and no promise of a steady income, that made just about every other job look way more appealing. But you know what? God never left us alone. Never. He always provided what we needed in order to do what He was calling us to do. Every. Single. Time.

Once Jonah repented and allowed God to change his heart towards the Ninevite people, it ultimately led to God having compassion on them and not bringing upon them the destruction that He had threatened (Jonah 3:10). God moved even through Jonah’s unwilling heart and lack of compassion for his enemies, just like He works through our own doubts and fears.

Maybe like me, you also find yourself relating to a story about someone who was resistant to God’s call to change. Here are a few things to ponder as you examine your own life:

1. Is there a relationship, decision, or heart change that you’ve been avoiding? If so, why do you think that is? Name the fears or obstacles that come to mind.
2. Take a moment to reflect on how God has been faithful throughout your life, especially in times of adversity or uncertainty. Write down some examples in a journal or in a note on your phone that you can revisit when you need the reminder.
3. Meditate on the following scriptures over the next several days or weeks as you discern what change God may be asking you to make:

“For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Philippians 2:13).

“And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8).

“The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing” (Psalm 23:1).

—Written by Stephanie Teague. Used by permission from the author.