People Can Change

 

Acts 9

Saul was a person who helped to persecute Christians who followed Jesus. Saul was blind after Jesus came to visit him while he was going to Damascus. While Saul was conversing with the Lord, Jesus asked him why he was persecuting Him. After this experience with the Lord, Saul believed in the Lord. Saul had a change of heart, but he was also blind. Saul was commanded to go to Damascus to receive more instruction.  Meanwhile, Ananias had a vision to go see Saul and to heal him from the blindness. Ananias was surprised because he knew Saul had been persecuting the Lord's people, however, he trusted the Lord and did as the Lord commanded. Ananias met Saul and cured his blindnesses. Saul had been blind for three days. Saul went on to become a great disciple of Christ, and he even wrote a lot of the New Testament (in the form of his letters to different congregations of saints). This dramatic transformation show us that people can change. This is something that gives us hope. We all want to change in some way, or hope somebody else can change. Through Jesus Christ, change is always a possibility.

In a talk entitled, See Others as They May Become, President Monson shared the following story:

"During the 1940s and 1950s, an American prison warden, Clinton Duffy, was well known for his efforts to rehabilitate the men in his prison. Said one critic, 'You should know that leopards don’t change their spots!'

"Replied Warden Duffy, 'You should know I don’t work with leopards. I work with men, and men change every day.'" 

Not only can people change, but we must always be looking to change into the best version of ourselves that is possible. Making progress including changing. I want to change to be better every day so I can live in the presence of God someday.