Rick Warren: The Holy Spirit will change one's life beyond the imaginable, but not overnight

Kaye Garcia Monday, January 09, 2017

Rick Warren appears in a screen capture of a video released by Saddleback Church. | YouTube/Saddleback Church

God can change somebody's life beyond what's imaginable, but transformation will be incremental and cannot be rushed, says evangelical pastor Rick Warren.

In an article titled "Changes Take Time" posted on his official website, Warren posted this question: "Do you want to be a mushroom or an oak tree?"

The pastor reasons out that in the same way that God takes six hours to create a mushroom and 60 years to grow an oak tree, it takes time for God to bring about major changes in one's life. He writes, "The Holy Spirit will make changes in your life far beyond anything you thought was possible, but they're not going to happen overnight."

Warren then pens a prayer that his readers be more Christlike through working with the Holy Spirit and the Gospel and that they become stronger persons year after year, "emotionally, physically, spiritually, psychologically, and financially." Although, he stressed the importance of doing such purposely. He quotes Ephesians 4:24 ESV in saying, "Put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness"

Rick Warren is the founder of Saddleback Church, a 33-year-old megachurch based in Lake Forest, California, where he continues to serve as the senior pastor. He is also the author of some well-known Christian books today.

Last year, Michael Phelps, one of the most decorated Olympian in history, revealed that he Warren's book, "The Purpose Driven Life," was instrumental in his rescue from being a suicidal person who struggled with his identity outside of being a champion swimmer.

In an interview with TODAY, Phelps revealed that he hit rock bottom in 2014 following a driving under the influence arrest and a wounded relationship with his longtime coach, Bob Bowman. The Olympian checked himself into an Arizona rehab center in 2015, where he found upliftment from Warren's "The Purpose Driven Life," eventually transforming into someone whom fellow patients would call "Preacher Mike" because he would often read the book to them.