The Beach Scene & The War Zone

We have to believe people can change, we just have to. We are going against everything that hope stands for when we believe that people are who they are and there is no way they can change. Where is the joy in life, really, if we think we are all just stuck. I have heard a lot of people in my lifetime say,"People don't change, in their core, they are who they are." What a lie! The lie exposed is this: I want to believe I can change and choose to not extend that same grace, that same hope to someone else. In the core of who we are, we have to believe that people can change. It's a tricky mixed bag though...because in the middle of knowing they can change we have to learn to love them with a love that looks past the "stuck" part. I have some stuck parts! The stuck parts of our lives are hard to deal with, don't ya think? It's like on one side of your brain you have this beach scene: breeze blowing, perfect temperature, relaxing in the sun... Then, on the other side there is disorganization: guns firing, thunder, lighting, storms everywhere, and just over all chaos. The stuck parts are also hard because that's what others see so often. We try to throw our beach out there, but without fail, the stuck side shows itself, and it always will. So here I am, admitting to be stuck in some areas of my life. In realizing that I am stuck I must realize others are too. The tricky part comes with the dreaded PRIDE word. You see, the tricky part comes when our friends and family's stuck parts are different than our own. The place in this journey where we think people can't change is when they are dealing with something, or are "stuck" in something, that we don't understand or don't struggle with ourselves. You see extending grace for someone should not be based upon the place they are stuck at. Believing in what hope stands for doesn't only have it's power in certain circumstances. You see, with hope it's black or white. Here is how it is; either you believe people can change or you don't. Either you believe your stuck places are like their stuck places, or not. There are no categories of sin in the eyes of God. A heart that loves himself more, just simply loves himself more. A stuck place in you is like a stuck place in me. One thing is for sure, I'm working hard on what surrendering those stuck places look like. I know in my heart that I can be unstuck. So with an unwavering hope I believe I can change. With an unwavering hope, I need to believe you can change, even if your beach scene is my war zone and your war zone is my beach scene. It's called hope people, and it's for EVERYONE!