2A COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL AUGUST 9, 2017
My father became a Christian when he was 83 years old. There
were many times throughout the years when I thought, “He will
never change!” But I kept praying for him. And thank God, even-
tually, he did change—he experienced the greatest transformation
of all.
To be transformed means you are changed entirely from the in-
side out. When we become born-again Christians, 2 Corinthians
5:17 (AMPC) says we are “a new creation (a new creature alto-
gether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed
away. Behold, the fresh and new has come!”
The Holy Spirit comes to live in us, and He works in us—trans-
forming our mind, will and emotions—so we become more like
Jesus day by day. As we grow spiritually, the good work that’s hap-
pening inside us can be seen through the way we live, and we be-
come testimonies of what God has done.
Sadly, many times people don’t believe they can be completely
changed. And often they don’t believe other people can change. But
the only thing that never changes is God (Hebrews 13:8). And He
wants us to dare to believe that He “is able to [carry out His purpose
and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask
or think [infi nitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts,
hopes, or dreams]” (Ephesians 3:20 AMPC).
The question is what are you expecting God to do for you? May-
be you’re having a hard time believing that your kids can change,
your marriage can improve or that you can ever lose weight, get a
better job or get completely out of debt.
But Jeremiah 29:11 says God’s thoughts and plans for us are “for
welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your fi nal
outcome.” He has a good plan for you, and you can dare to be-
lieve He can heal you anywhere you hurt and help you with every
problem you face. It’s time to start expecting more from God than
you’ve ever believed He would do for you before.
The key to having what God wants you to have is learning to
think like He thinks. And Romans 12:2 teaches that we are trans-
formed by the renewing of our minds. I’ve discovered several ways
we need to change our thinking so we can live with the mind of the
Holy Spirit (Romans 8:6).
We need to change our thinking about…
•
God. It’s so important for us to know who God really is.
He’s not an angry God, and He’s not “harsh, hard, sharp, or press-
ing, but comfortable, gracious, and pleasant” (Matthew 11:30). God
loves you, and if you know how much He loves you right now, then
you’ll have hope that the things in your life that need to change can
be changed.
•
Ourselves. If you don’t like yourself, you’re going to have
diffi culty in every area of your life. Don’t demand perfection from
yourself. No one is perfect, and no matter what we do, we usually
don’t think it’s enough: we don’t pray enough, work hard enough,
study the Bible enough, etc. God spoke to my heart one day and
told me, “Joyce, you’re never enough, but I’m always more than
enough.” That’s why Jesus came! Believe that, in Christ, there’s
more right than wrong with you, and you can do whatever you need
to do in life through Him (2 Corinthians 5:21; John 15:5; Philippi-
ans 4:13).
•
Trials, or the hard, painful things we go through in life.
Habakkuk 3:19 says God is our strength and He will help us to
“walk [not to stand still in terror, but to walk] and make spiritual
progress upon [our] high places [of trouble, suffering, or respon-
sibility]!” James 1:2-4 encourages us to “consider it wholly joy-
ful…whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials,” because
“the trial and proving of your faith” are what God works through to
make us “fully developed…lacking in nothing.”
•
The level of importance we put on what others think about
us. It’s easy to let what others do and say affect us, and to feel like
“If you don’t like me, my day is ruined.” But the truth is, if we’re
more concerned with being a people-pleaser than a God-pleaser, we
won’t become what God created us to be and do what He’s calling
us to do (Galatians 1:10).
I want to encourage you to study scriptures that reveal God’s true
character and His heart for you. And dare to believe that there’s
nothing in your life He can’t change—including you!
For more on this topic, order Joyce’s four-teaching CD series
How to Survive Change. You can also contact us to receive our free
magazine, Enjoying Everyday Life, by calling (800) 727-9673 or
visiting www.joycemeyer.org.
Ladies, join Joyce Meyer for the 35th Annual Love Life Women’s
Conference September 21-23 in Saint Louis, MO. For more infor-
mation, go to www.joycemeyer.org/lovelife.
Jenna Buetow
Grant Gording, BC-HIS
Hearing Consultant
Board Certifi ed in
Hearing Instrument Sciences
Free Hearing Screening
IN MEMORIAM
Vanetta Lynn Bennett 1946-2017
Same Day Appointments Available
Esther Gatewood 1924-2017
Vanetta Lynn Bennett, 70, of Cottage
Grove died July 20, 2017 from compli-
cations from COPD.
She was born Dec. 15, 1946 in Con-
cord, Calif. to Quenten and Pauline
(Rainbolt) Whitford.
In 1965, Vanetta graduated from Yg-
nacio Valley High in Concord, Calif.
She worked as a CNA caregiver and
also as a bartender at the Grove Tavern.
She enjoyed gardening, beach combing, painting and playing
Bingo.
Survivors include her two children, Jay Plowright Jr. of Cottage
Grove and Janelle Plowright of Eugene, twin brothers, Don Whit-
ford of Vallejo, Calif. and Ron Whitford of Acampo, Calif., two
sisters, Susan Goehner of Jamestown, N.D. and Arletta Fink of
Norman, Okla., six grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren
with one due in November.
She was preceded in death by a grandchild, Bradford Plowright,
on Aug. 1, 1996.
As per her request, no services will be held and the family will
spread her ashes at the Oregon Coast.
Arrangements under the care of Alpha Cremation Service, Eu-
gene.
Esther was born on Sept. 22, 1924 to Charles and Louise Plum-
mer in Monroe, Ore. She grew up in Cottage Grove and was the
second oldest of six children. Esther met the love of her life, Bud
Gatewood, at an ice cream parlor and they were wed on June 21,
1941. Their fi rst home was in Leland, Ore. and consisted of two
boxcars put together. Their son Butch was born in 1942 and daugh-
ter Linda in 1945.
In the 1950’s, Esther worked as a cook for the school. She was
a loving mother and spent her years with family boating, crabbing,
racing powderpuff and standing up on the back of Buddy’s motor-
cycle while riding. Every year, when school time came around, you
would fi nd Esther in the kitchen doing permanents on several loved
ones. Buddy and Esther even had an airplane. One time she even
took off in the plane, now knowing how to fl y. Buddy was hanging
onto the wing. Luckily, she realized how to shut it off before getting
too far off the ground. One thing’s for certain, she lived a fun-fi lled
life. Esther was the type of person who never judged and who loved
with her whole heart.
Esther is survived by her daughter Linda; daughter-in-law Ellen;
fi ve grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren, sisters-in-law Ro-
salee, Kay, Vera and Nadine.
She was preceded in death by her parents, son Butch, husband
Buddy, siblings Skeeter, Jimmy, Jack, Marie and Charles, brother-
in-law Chuck, sister-in-law Edith and son-in-law Barney.
Esther and Buddy will be reunited and put to rest in Leland, Ore.
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DEATH NOTICE
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