Changepoints - Softcover

Heatherley, Joyce Landorf

3.8

15 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0929488180 ISBN 13: 9780929488189

Publisher: Balcony Pub Inc, 1992

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As the rose opens in stages, so too does a woman's life unfold. Joyce shares the joys and challenges of what she calls life's Changepoints. With extraordinary empathy, she shows that life, with its multiplicity of changes, is a "never-ending time of needing the Lord." Trusting in God's love when we need it most will provide guidance in all areas of change.

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About the Author:

Joyce Landorf Heatherley, nationally known author, public speaker, and recording artist brings the special message of love and hope to thousands of men and women through her books, videos, music, and inspired presentations.

A graduate of Pasadena City College with a degree in music, Joyce also received an honorary doctorate in humanities from Azusa Pacific University. Through her 24 books, her film series (His Stubborn Love), speaking engagements, radio programs and national television appearances, Joyce has spread her inspired message of hope to millions of readers and viewers both in the U.S. and overseas. Her four record albums exemplify her musical gift and touch the hearts of people needing reassurance, hope and support in the trials of everyday living. There are over seven million copies of her products in circulation.

It was a special time for me; yet, in spite of the press of women around me, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw her.

She was standing apart from the others, just quietly waiting, the last in line. She was young, quite beautiful, and obviously quite upset.

When the last person said good-bye, the young woman came up, hugged me, and tearfully whispered, "Oh, Joyce, thank you for today's lesson. I really needed it." Then taking a deep breath for the sake of some semblance of control, she added, "Do pray for me...I'm at the changepoints of my life."

I promised her I would pray, and all the way home, I kept thinking about her word changepoints.

My big forty-pound dictionary does not list the one compound word - only the two words, change and points. Still, the woman had put them together, and I knew exactly what she meant.

"Changepoints of my life," she had said. Funny, but isn't that exactly where we all are most of the time? Aren't all people in the midst of transition?

Look at some of the definitions of the word change when it's used as a verb: "to cause to turn, to pass from one state to another, to alter, to make a difference, to vary, or to substitute one thing for another." Then, as a noun, change can mean, "any variation or alteration in form, state, quality or essence, or the beginning." The word point has over thirty-five definitions, most of which pertain to or describe a position, place, fixed station, particular time, a unit of measurement, the end of something, or a main idea.

As I studied the long, detailed definitions of both words, I realized that the young woman in my class had created a new word for a very old situation.

The circumstances of our lives put us in constant contact with points of change, and just when we feel we are freed from one particular changepoint, crisis, transition, or stage of life - pow! We are off into another one. Changepoints are here to stay.

The little girl can't wait to grow up so she can be a "boss" like Mommy.

The teenage girl fantasizes about having clear, beautiful skin and what kind of man she'll love.

A young wife and new mother longs for the time when her baby will sleep the whole night through.

The wife of a military man dreams of OWNING a home, wallpapering it, and staying in it until the cow jumps over the moon.

The couple without children wonders if having or adopting a child would bring a lasting happiness to their marriage.

The mother of two teenagers hopes the old adage "this too shall pass" will come true.

The woman whose children have grown and left home can't define exactly what's wrong with her - only that this time in her life isn't as she expected it to be.

The newly divorced or widowed woman suddenly finds herself experiencing the highly praised freedom she's heard about, but now that she has it, it's a lonely kind of freedom and she doesn't have a clue as to how to develop or use it.

The woman who goes through the hormonal changes of menopause wakes up one morning to find the cold fear of growing old heavily upon her. She questions whether God has more in store for her or if this is all there is.

What we all forget in every phase of our lives is that life is a whole series of changepoints.

Did my young student think that as I grew older, I matured and left my changepoints behind me? Or, did she mistakenly conclude that since I was teaching, I must have it all together, and therefore I'm not threatened or intimidated by the changepoints?

I smiled when I got to thinking about people who appear to have it all together, because no one - not even the incredible Billy Graham or Mrs. Billy Graham - has it all together twenty-four hours a day, every day.

At this very moment we are all facing the changepoints of our lives, and if we are honest we'll have to admit that at times it's rather frightening! Some of our circumstances like age, environment, and the state of our physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being, will be different. But none of us can avoid the pressures and stress of change for very long.

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