"Most of the change God has done in me has come from me doing things the hard way, that is, my way."

A thought by Lisa Whittle from her book, Jesus Over Everything (p. 6). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.)

Change is such an important thing but also a very difficult thing for us to do. But we need to do it in order for Jesus to be over everything.

Lisa says, "This is the upheaving of self, long buried in the denial tactics we humans are so good at mastering. Moments when I found myself in such a mess, with Jesus holding me as He cleaned my wounds, reminding me of His wellness plan. . . I haven’t forgotten that history. When you’ve been maimed from self-inflicted wounds, you don’t soon forget."

She goes on, "The truth is, I can’t choose my way over Jesus’ way anymore because I can’t afford the scars. A Jesus-over-everything lifestyle is a Jesus-take-over-me-and-my-lifestyle so I don’t ruin my one precious life. But even more than that, it’s the understanding that the priority of Jesus brings order to the chaos of our lives, a job only God is big enough to do.

"If we want our lives to work, the Jesus-first life is the way. God doesn’t want us to waste our lives trying to maneuver another way, making life more complicated in the process. As the Creator of the system of order, He knows how things will work."

She later says, "I’m okay with it if you want to put Jesus over everything—starting with yourself—for a reason other than one that is superspiritual. Maybe you feel like it’s the right thing to do. Maybe you feel it is expected of you as a follower of Jesus. Maybe your heart really isn’t in it right now and you are leaning toward making the choice simply because you’re embarrassed you never have before. Or maybe your decisions up to this point have created a complicated life or situation, and that’s not the life you want, so it’s more about finally trying it God’s way. From someone who wildly reaped the benefits of a year’s shopping fast—and who was largely embarrassed into it—let me just say that sometimes a bad reason to start is enough. And on this Jesus-over-everything journey, I have faith that if you stay committed to it, somewhere along the way it will become a new lifestyle."

She then says, "And you’ll want it this way because it is the way it’s supposed to be."

And that is so true, isn't it?

Yes, yes

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