Transformation from the Heart: The 4 P's of Change
“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.”—Rom. 8:29
As I pass by my local neighborhood school, I chuckle at the “Character Counts!” banners displayed in the front of the building. Perhaps it is a bit prideful of me, but deep inside, I know that no amount of strategies, resources, or special events will grow character in children (or in me, for that matter!). Trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship are not nurtured by an external program of character education.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I think these things—and more—are all actually biblical values. In fact, God expects even more than these six traits highlighted by the Character Counts program. He also desires love, service, sacrifice, gratitude, holiness, righteousness, mercy, kindness…the list goes on.
But whatever the trait, there is no way that we can muster up that change on our own because all of us have a major problem: sin. Our own natural-born hearts work against us. We are born wanting all the opposite things!
We come into the world self-centered, seeking our own interests, pursuing our own gain. We want to take the easy way out. We tend to focus on the negative more than the positive.
That means we start out with a disadvantage. And we can’t do anything about that. But does that also mean it’s impossible to change?
The Point (Goal) of Change
Perhaps it depends on our definition of “change.” If it is simply about alteration or modification, then as humans, we will always be changing one way or another. No one ever stays an infant—and if they do, then it’s a sign that something is not right. Being human means you will change.
But in this series, I am looking at change beyond mere alteration of appearance or behavior. When I am writing about change, it is the change of growth into something newer and better. This is the change of maturity and improvement.
Left on our own, we will change, but it will be temporary positive change at best or negative change because of our sin nature at least. So if we all change, and our best changes don’t last, how can we change in a positive way that sticks, not just for this lifetime but for eternity?
We can pursue self-improvement, a common pathway for many, as the myriad of self-help books attest. However, to be honest, even our loftiest goals for positive change are small compared to what God intended when He created humanity. If we want to know what real humans are meant to be, He shows us in Christ.
And this is His goal for us—to be like Christ (Rom. 8:29). If we want to be all we were made to be, it’s not about being most fully “me,” but most fully who Christ is. It is to seek to reflect the character of Christ through my personality, my gifts and talents, my roles and relationships.
This is the kind of change we’re looking at in this series.
The Possibility of Change
Unfortunately, the truth is, we can’t do this—at least not by our own strength. It is what values education programs or self-help books try to do, but they will always fall short. Our best attempts, as Isaiah 64:6 tells us, are righteous deeds that are like “filthy rags.” (NIV)
However, if we humbly bow our knee to the true King (Christ, and not ourselves), accept His verdict against us (death) as well as His solution (salvation through faith in Jesus alone), He changes us from the inside out. We are given a new heart, a new identity, a new life.
Once He has changed us first in our very nature, changing our sin-stained heart and making us a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17), all these beautiful character qualities are possible for us. Not only that, He changes our appetites and desires to want to display these, not for our glory, but for God’s. With our new hearts, we will want what He wants and labor towards it, even at cost to ourselves (Phil. 2:12-13).
But this is only possible when God has first transformed our hearts. If we have responded humbly to His offer of salvation, we no longer are bound to follow the path of sin. He opens up a new way of living—of real change—for us.
The Process of Change
If we desire to see eternal change in our lives, then Christlikeness is the goal—not more discipline, a better rein on our words, or avoiding temptation. Those behaviors are means to the end, but not the ends themselves.
With that said, the one who does the transforming work in us is God. Over time, bit by bit, He takes the trials, temptations, and even sins in our lives and uses them to help us grow in dependence on Him (Rom. 8:28; 2 Cor. 3:18; James 1:2-5).
As we relinquish our own control and way, He begins to help us live as His servants. We begin to take on the family likeness of the Father and the Son as the Holy Spirit works in us to help us bear the fruit that comes when we abide in Him. He promises to keep working with us until the job is complete (Phil. 1:6).
However, this does not mean we don’t have a part in the process either! We do need to trust Him, even when it feels difficult to do so. We actively put off sin and with the help of the Spirit, choose to put on that which reflects Him (Eph. 4:22-24). We recognize this change will take a lifetime so we are patient with the process.
A Picture of Change: Three Trees
A picture of change that has helped me a lot is David Powlison’s “Three Trees” model. I was first introduced to it when I took his course, Dynamics of Biblical Change, through the CCEF’s School of Biblical Counseling (SBC). . (Here’s a diagram from Canyon Hills Counseling diagrams if you’d like to see what I’m talking about.)
I was in a very low period in my life. We were about 3-4 years into our adoption, and our marriage was a mess. Even as a pastor’s wife, I was alienated from the community I needed because I felt so ashamed of my inability to handle my family. I felt like a fraud and a hypocrite.
When I won a raffle to take a course through SBC, I was required to start with Dynamics, so I did, not expecting much. I was one hot mess!
But I was wrong. God used Dr. Powlison’s teaching not simply to equip me to counsel others but to search my own heart. I underestimated the power of my God to change people, especially one so heartbroken and sinful as me.
Because God has used this in such life-changing ways in my own personal life, I have since gone on to share it with others. In the rest of this series, I will describe a bit of the model in each post. So let me give a quick overview before we get started.
There are three trees:
The Godless Tree: this represents our old ways of operating that usually get us nowhere good. We can also call this the “vicious cycle.” We often feel stuck here, unable to change.
The God-Centered Tree: this represents the new ways of living before God and bearing fruit in keeping with Christ. This is where we often start when we think of change, but as we will see, this is not where it begins. We can also call this the “gracious cycle.”
The Gospel Tree: this is the centerpiece of the entire picture. It is only through the Gospel that we can move from the vicious cycle to the gracious cycle.
I’ll unpack these trees in more detail in the posts to come. In the meantime, I encourage you to prepare for the journey by thinking of something in your own life that you’d like to change. It will help to have a concrete area to focus and work on. A couple tips in choosing your “change project”:
It should be something in your sphere of control. It should not be in a circumstance that is out of your control
It should be a change that you want to see in yourself, not another person. Even if it is a broken relationship, define the change in terms of what you will do, not how you want someone else to change.
So consider things like a negative disposition or bad attitude you have, a fear that lurks in your heart, a struggle with a particular person in your life, tendencies toward pride, and so on. Be as specific as possible. Instead of “anger,” think “anger at my children when they interrupt me,” or “distrust of God with my finances.”
Then keep this particular focus in your life as you move forward to change. Take time to reflect on the questions in light of this change.
Most of all, take time to pray and seek our heavenly Father who loves you and is actively at work to help you to become more like His Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.
