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Becoming Who God Created You to Be Through Change

Becoming Who God Created You to Be Through Change

Last updated on: September 27, 2026 at 9:32 am by Michele Gunn

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Becoming Who God Created You to Be Through Change 2026-09-27T09:32:57-05:00 Michele Gunn

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

We may find ourselves in seasons that require something new from us. Perhaps we need greater courage, deeper patience, stronger faith, healthier boundaries, more humility or a willingness to surrender control. That doesn’t mean we weren’t enough before. It means there is still room to grow. | Image Created in Canva with ChatGPT.

Change has a way of showing us things about ourselves we might never have discovered if life had remained comfortable. A new job may reveal abilities we didn’t know we possessed. A move may teach us courage and adaptability. A changing relationship may deepen our compassion. An unexpected challenge may uncover resilience we never knew we needed. Even the changes we would never have chosen can become places of growth when we allow God to work through them.

Throughout this month, we have explored change from several perspectives. We have considered the opportunities change can bring, how we can steward a new season, and how change can deepen our spiritual growth. But perhaps there is another question worth asking:

Who am I becoming through this change?

We often talk about discovering who God created us to be. That discovery is important, but our journey doesn’t end there. We are not static. While our identity in Christ remains secure, God continues forming, stretching, refining and preparing us throughout our lives.

Philippians 1:6 offers this beautiful reassurance: “I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Know that God’s work in you isn’t finished. And sometimes, change becomes part of how He continues that work.

Created and Still Becoming

Ephesians 2:10,reminds us, “For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them.” You are God’s handiwork. You were created intentionally, uniquely, lovingly and purposefully. Yet being God’s handiwork doesn’t mean that every part of your life has already reached its finished form. Think about the people God called throughout Scripture. Abraham had to leave what was familiar. Moses had to grow into leadership. Peter had to move beyond his failures. Paul experienced a complete redirection of his life. God met each of them where they were, but He didn’t leave them there. The same is true for us.

You Can Outgrow a Season Without Rejecting It

One of the hardest parts of change can be letting go of something that was good. We often assume that if God is leading us away from something, there must have been something wrong with it. But that isn’t necessarily true. A season can have been exactly where you were supposed to be and still come to an end. A role may have taught you what you needed to learn. A community may have supported you during an important period of your life. A ministry may have given you opportunities to serve. A friendship may have shaped you. A particular way of living may have fit the person you were at that time. You don’t have to diminish the value of yesterday in order to embrace what God is doing today.

Gratitude and letting go can coexist. You can thank God for what a season gave you while acknowledging that you aren’t called to remain there forever, even though it may be difficult. Sometimes flourishing requires releasing what once fit us perfectly so we have room to receive what God is preparing next. We find that 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us “So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come.” There will always be parts of ourselves that God invites us to leave behind; not because our past was meaningless, but because He is continuing to make something new.

Change Reveals Strengths You Haven’t Needed Before

I have spent years helping people understand their strengths, and one thing I have learned is that we don’t always recognize what we are capable of until life gives us an opportunity to use it. Comfortable circumstances tend to call upon familiar abilities. Change doesn’t. Change may ask you to make decisions you’ve never made before, navigate unfamiliar surroundings, meet new people, learn new systems, advocate for yourself, lead differently, ask for help or to begin again.

Suddenly, qualities that may have been quietly developing within you are needed. You discover courage because something requires you to be courageous. Resilience arises because giving up isn’t the answer. You become more compassionate because your own struggles have helped you understand someone else’s. Creativity emerges because the old solution no longer works. You grow in faith because you cannot see far enough ahead to depend solely upon yourself. What if some of the discomfort you’re experiencing isn’t evidence that something has gone wrong? What if it is revealing something God has been developing within you all along?

Flourishing Isn’t the Same as Comfort

We often picture flourishing as finally reaching the place where everything falls into place. The struggle ends, the questions disappear and life finally feels peaceful, predictable and comfortable. But biblical flourishing isn’t necessarily comfortable. A plant doesn’t flourish because nothing ever changes. It flourishes because it continues to grow. The plant sends roots deeper and reaches toward the light. It also adapts to changing conditions. In the right season, it is pruned and eventually it bears fruit.

Jesus tells us in John 15:5, “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.” Notice that flourishing begins with remaining in Christ and not remaining in comfortable circumstances. We can become so focused on getting through change that we overlook what God may be growing through it. Instead of asking only, When will life feel normal again? we can ask: God, how can I become fruitful here?

The answer may surprise us.

Flourishing might look like becoming more confident in something God has called you to do. It may mean learning to trust Him when you don’t have all the answers. It could mean developing patience, finding your voice, establishing healthier priorities, serving people differently or discovering that your purpose can be expressed in ways you hadn’t previously imagined. Growth can be uncomfortable and still be good.

Rise. Align. Shine. Through Change

Change gives us an opportunity to intentionally choose how we will respond.

Rise. Recognize that God is still working in your life. Don’t allow uncertainty to convince you that your story has stalled. Get up, look forward and trust that the God who has carried you this far remains with you.

Align. Bring your choices, attitudes, priorities and responses back to God. Ask whether the way you are navigating this season reflects your faith and the person He is forming you to become.

Shine. Use what God is developing within you to serve others. Your growth was never intended to benefit only you. The courage you develop may encourage someone else. The wisdom you gain may guide another person. The compassion born from your struggle may allow you to walk beside someone facing a similar season.

Change doesn’t have to dim your light. Sometimes it teaches you how to shine differently.

Ask: Who Am I Becoming?

As you consider the changes happening in your own life, resist the temptation to evaluate them only by what you are gaining or losing. Look inward as well.

Ask yourself:

What is this season teaching me?
What am I being asked to release?
What qualities might God be developing within me?
What strengths am I being called to use?
Where am I being stretched beyond what feels comfortable?
How can the person I am becoming better serve God and others?
What might flourishing look like on the other side of this change?

Spend some time with those questions in prayer. You may not have immediate answers. That’s okay. Becoming takes time.

God’s Work Isn’t Finished

When we are in the middle of change, we naturally focus on what is changing around us: our circumstances, routines, responsibilities, relationships, work, homes, families or plans. But perhaps one of the greatest works taking place is the one we cannot immediately see. God is continuing His work within us. Philippians 1:6 reminds us again that “the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.” What a beautiful promise to carry into any uncertain season.

You don’t have to have everything figured out. Nor do you have to know exactly what life will look like on the other side. You don’t even have to completely understand why this particular change is happening. You can simply remain open to God’s work. Honor where you have been. Release what you are no longer called to carry. Pay attention to what God is developing within you. Trust Him enough to step into what comes next. Remember that change isn’t necessarily taking you away from who you are. It may be part of becoming who God created you to be. So rise into the new season. Align yourself with God who is leading you and shine with everything He is continuing to develop within you. Because God’s work isn’t finished and neither is your story.

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