Reformation...

The day I took my daughter to college was one of the most difficult days of my life.  I was walking away from her when she was going through a tough personal experience and I knew she truly needed me.  But I was afraid if I didn't go, she would lose her confidence and never recover.  I was so torn, not knowing what was right.  But I realized she needed to know I believed in her, so she would believe in herself, and somehow I found the strength to leave her, painful though it was for both of us.  (Good thing she didn't know I drove around the corner and cried for two hours before I was able to drive myself home!)  She was reformed through that hard life experience, and I know the solid, joyful person she is today is, in part, because of getting through that tough time.

It reformed me, as well.  I returned, alone, to a large empty house, suddenly without the parenting responsibilities I had carried for so many years.  I had no one to answer to, no one to cook for, clean up after, monitor or direct, and I was at loose ends for a long while.

Our relationship, although changed externally, remained parent and child.  I spent many hours on the phone and going to visit.  But the daily responsibilities had changed, and I needed to refocus my time and attention in a new way.  I had to reform my life to fit my new circumstances, and it was hard, even painful, as change usually is.  But without reformation, there would be nothing new.  And sometimes new is glorious.

Jesus came to earth as a human being, a baby, born into humble circumstances.  He died on a cross like a common criminal, bearing the pain for our sinful natures.  But then he arose, reformed, to a new life in heaven with God.  His reformation was our salvation.

Reformation is hard.  It requires us to give up something familiar for the unknown.  We only know where we have been, and it is uncomfortable to lose the solid footing of our present self to step out on what seems to be thin air.  We can fall, we often do, in the process of reforming.  The bumps can be jarring, they can even break us, but the healing is part of the process of becoming new.

Just as a caterpillar reforms to become a beautiful butterfly, we too can reform to become a better version of ourselves.  We can cast off the ugly shackles of past failures and embrace the new opportunities that present themselves.  People of all ages reform themselves.  It is never too late to become someone new and even better than before.

God asks us to reform ourselves in his image when we love and follow him.  He doesn't ask us to give up living in the world, that is part of being human.  Instead, we are asked to live as Jesus taught us, with love and compassion and prayer.  When we reform our secular perspective into one of faith, we become the best version of ourselves, the person God intended us to be.

Today I am grateful for reformation.  It is the ultimate change, and eternal life with God in heaven is the beautiful outcome.