Training and preparation are constants in life. You start with learning your letters and numbers when you’re little. Then you get in school and spend twelve years learning new things each year that build one upon the other. Maybe you’re an athlete and you train to master a sport along the way. Then there’s college and—you guessed it!—there’s more training for your future career. Finally, you land the job you’ve always dreamed of and guess what! There is more training!
This training is great and an absolute necessity to help us navigate the changes that life brings. Sometimes we seek out these changes, but others are just new seasons in life. One thing we can be sure of is that each new season requires us to change along with it. I can admit that, when it comes to change, I do not always enjoy the process, and I bet I’m not the only one. I have tried to take shortcuts. I have given up and started over. I have tried to convince myself that the change isn’t necessary. I have even intentionally ignored God’s voice because of not wanting to patiently wait for God’s process. Something that always comes to mind for me in these situations is a phrase my platoon sergeant used to say when I was in the Army: “Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.” This simply means that going through the process is necessary. The training period that precedes you reaching your goal is just as important as reaching your goal. The slow repetitiveness of your spiritual training is what brings a fast spiritual response to the difficult changes you may face.
Philippians 1:6 says that the Lord is doing a continuous good work in us and that He will continue to do so until the day of Christ’s return. That means that our training and changing is a continual operation and not just a singular task.
The slow repetitiveness of your spiritual training is what brings a fast spiritual response to the difficult changes you may face.
The important thing to remember is that it is God performing His work through and in us. It is not our job to try quickly navigating situations on our own.
Stay Strong and Carry On,
Carrington
