THE 5 STEPS TO CHANGING YOUR LIFE

Martin Luther King Jr., one of the greatest dreamers who ever lived, declared: “Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase. Just take the first step."¹

I’m in my forties, and as you might imagine, scores of individuals have stepped into my life: some for a reason, some for a season and others for a lifetime. Some have talked the talk, some have walked the walk, and others have done both.

Each brought with them a reflection of the experiences — both good and bad — they’ve had along life’s way. They weren’t born the person they grew to become. Rather, day-by-day and year-by-year, they acquired their personal definition from the books they read and the people with whom they associated.

There’s truth to this maxim: “Show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are.” If you hang out with bank robbers you could end up driving the getaway car, and if you associate with pigs, you’ll soon be rolling in the mud. Kids who wind up in gangs join them primarily to fulfill a need for community, and soon, they prey on society to support that community and attain identity within the group. Through con-version to Christianity, though, a gang-banger can dust himself off to lead a church or become a mentor to struggling youth.

Paul, once a persecutor of Christians, encountered a changed life on the road to Damascus when struck by a bright light from heaven. Following three days of blindness, he regained his sight by the hand of a disciple named Ananias, and immediately turned his life around, preaching Jesus as the Son of God (Acts 9:1-20).

So, yes, you can change your life and, yes, you can become the person you desire to become. Is it going to be easy? Probably not; effective change is not a Jack and the Beanstalk scenario. It’s more like a seasonal transition. During autumn, leaves die and fall to the ground before winter steps in, and like the seasons, change is a process. Real change doesn’t happen over night.

Becoming who you want to become is going to take work, as does raising a child, building a successful marriage, getting a degree or mastering a craft. Is it possible? It has been done. Can you do it? Only if you think you can. Will you lift yourself up by your own boot straps? Leaders aren’t born; they are made. Is change worth the effort? Real change starts on the inside. “You cannot travel within and stand still without.”² Your greatest achievement was at first, and for some time, just a thought.

One thing is for sure: If you grasp and apply these five steps that I’m about to give you, not only will you climb to insurmountable heights in your life and career, but you’ll also have more joy, more friends, more love, more money, more passion and a deep sense of spiritual and intellectual satisfaction.

As your guide, it’s imperative that I prepare you with simple guidelines. Upon receiving the idea to write this book, inspirational thoughts flooded my mind, allowing me to complete its first draft in one week. To get the most out of it, you need passion, blended with a burning desire to change your life.

If you’re ready to take on the world, you should read this book in its entirety before you go to bed. Do not create a dam; as a stream of water desires to reach the ocean, so train yourself to do likewise. Once you’ve finished reading, re-read the five steps as a refresher course. I’ll see you at the summit of life’s staircase.

- John A. Andrews