Change = Growth

I volunteered with a youth group for some years in my young adulthood; this was a wonderful experience for me. One training we as leaders listened to was titled, Change=Growth. What a true statement that is! In my 32 years of life I have experienced plenty of growth opportunities and I am grateful that I belonged to a community that encouraged us to constantly look for ways to improve ourselves and love the people around us. This has been a saving grace for me because while I have lived through some horrible experiences, my early years trained me to look for opportunities to grow.

My husband and I are entering a new adventure; we have applied for an apartment in NW Portland that is only 400 square feet. This will be a change for us; we have previously looked for the best bang for our buck. We collected enough furniture to accommodate a party of people, and extra backpacking gear so we could take friends with us backpacking. I enjoyed collecting “memories” flyers, post cards, announcements any small memento. Then there were the books. We both had a large library! In the last couple of years we have stripped off these excess items. We moved out of the country for a year and have recently returned. Now that we don’t have so many belongings we can live in an area we have always wanted to try but could never afford a larger apartment. The freedom of changing the way I view belongings and space is opening an exciting door.

Last weekend I purchased a pair of shoes for $80, I know that $80 American could feed a family of 6 for a week or more in the Dominican Republic. I also know that this beloved family that I am thinking of lives on about $15 dollars a day and this is not sufficient to meet their needs. Health emergencies happen frequently due to poor nutrition, sanitation, flooding and the hazards of the kind of work they can do. I know that I cannot afford to support this family monthly and that giving them money is not the answer but I do know that my decision process has changed. I used to buy new clothing because I was bored with my wardrobe; now I am determined to only buy clothing when I have a true need. I want to use my finances differently than before. I want to be free from debt so that I can be generous!
So if you want to grow you must change! Look for an area of your life where you can shake things up. Maybe you are finding yourself holding onto “stuff” and need to rethink how much you value is being placed on these items. Maybe it is time to make a change of career or to give of your free time. I challenging you to find an area of your life to change so that you can open the doors to growth.