How to make it through a season of transition successfully

Transition is the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another.

The church, the nation, the world, and many people personally are in a season transition. Transition can be an awkward and difficult season because things aren’t as they used to be but they aren’t yet as vision declares they will be. Many people make it into transition, (meaning they shift from where they were) but they do not make through and into the new season successfully.

I know because I’ve been there. I’ve missed it and had to wait for the next season but our heavenly Father God is a good God and He’s into giving do-overs again and again, again…… He wants us to make it to our expected end, even if that means repeat lessons in familiar seasons until we break old cycles and are able to move on into the new.

Many of the transitions we go through we do not and cannot control.

Life happens, people leave, new people come along, jobs change, finances change, plans change, feelings change. Sometimes God’s bring the change that causes the transition. Other times people do things that force us into a season of transition. And, then there are times that we initiate a transition when we are ready to move forward.  But through it all, God remains the same.

Some of the reason people don’t make it through a season of transition are:

1. They try to control the process of God-initiated change instead of trusting God and allowing Him to lead them and work things out with His mighty hand. This is mainly due to fear.
2. They are not ready to move forward and therefore look back, only to find themselves lost in the middle of somewhere.
3. They don’t like and/or know how to accept and deal with change, and therefore they see change as an enemy. Again, this is a form a fear, so even though they can’t go back they resist going forward.
4. They don’t think they have what it takes to be successful in the new thing, whether that be a place, a relationship, or a position.
5. They lose faith and begin to doubt. They complain and question God. They end up turning away from God.
6. They take wrong counsel.

 

Here are some things you can do in order to make it into the new, during a season of transition:

1. Trust in God and His plan. Stay close to Him, spend time with Him in His Word renewing your mind. Let Him speak to You and get His strategies.
2. Obey what you hear the Lord speak to you, and follow His instructions. Let Him lead you.
3. Trust yourself. Trust your instincts and decisions. Trust that you are hearing God. Know that God loves you and He’s got you.
4. Be open to new ways of doing things, new people, new atmospheres. Don’t be afraid to fail, forward.
5. Look at every situation and problem as an opportunity to learn the lessons God is waiting for you to get. Many times there’s something we need to learn during a time of transition that will determine where we end up.
6. Be humble, be teachable, be flexible and walk in love.
7. Put patience to work for you so you don’t faint and give up when things get hard, and they certainly will.  Or when things don’t go as planned, as fast as planned, or things move in a totally different direction than planned.
8. Write or rewrite your vision for your future and look at it often.
9. Take action steps that will move you forward, even if they are baby steps at first. But don’t be afraid to take big steps if you believe that God is leading you.

10. Get counsel if you’re unsure about your next move, but not just any counsel.

Sometimes you will just know in your knower what you are supposed to do because God has revealed it to you, and you won’t need to ask another soul. Like the Apostle Paul when God called him into ministry. Other times you may need to seek advice before you proceed. However, don’t ask people who care about you but don’t having any spiritual fortitude. Their opinions will be bias because they don’t want you to get hurt or go through something that may be uncomfortable for you. Because sometimes that’s what God calls us to, like that time Peter told  Jesus he didn’t have to go to the cross and die…

Don’t asks people who have hurt you in the past, people who you don’t know, unless God sends them, or people who are not discrete. Ask those who you know care about you and those who have successfully experienced what you are going through.

There are so many things that could have been on this list but these are things I learned along the way that helped me make it through some of my biggest transitions. I learned by trial and error, but I learned life lessons that I’m still using today. Beloved, if you are in a season of transition of any kind, I hope these things help you.