The Beautiful Art of Accepting One Another Through Life's Changes

Change is inevitable. Growth is optional. But what about acceptance?

We carry a quiet misconception into most of our relationships, the belief that people should remain essentially the same. The friend we made in college should hold the same opinions twenty years later. The spouse we married should maintain the same hobbies, habits, and hairstyles indefinitely. When this doesn't happen, disappointment seeps in. We find ourselves thinking, or even saying out loud, "You're not the person I thought you were."

But here's a profound truth that can transform our relationships: accepting one another through all the ages and stages of life is not just a nice idea, it's a core ingredient for strengthening the connections that shape our everyday existence.

Consider any relationship in your life that has lasted more than a decade. Think about who that person was when you first met them and who they are today. The changes are undeniable. Perhaps their political views have shifted. Maybe their spiritual journey has taken unexpected turns. Their priorities have evolved. Their circumstances have changed them.

We have no control over the changes others experience, nor do we control whether they choose to grow through those changes. That's between them and God. What we do control is our response, our capacity to accept them through it all.

The apostle Paul addressed this very issue when writing to the diverse church in Rome. In Romans 15:5-7, he urged believers to have the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, concluding with this powerful instruction:


This acceptance, this welcoming, receiving, embracing of one another, transcends differences in strength of faith, ethnic backgrounds, and differing viewpoints. It's the kind of radical acceptance Jesus modeled throughout His ministry.

Jesus was extraordinary at embracing people across every conceivable divide.

• He welcomed the Samaritan woman despite cultural taboos (John 4:7-26).
• He called tax collectors to follow Him when society rejected them (Matthew 9:9-13).
• He touched lepers when everyone else maintained their distance (Luke 5:12-13).
• He showed compassion to a Roman centurion, the very kind of soldier who would later nail Him to a cross (Matthew 8:5-13).

Jesus leaned into people that others stepped back from. He demonstrated a deep love and lasting acceptance that didn't require conformity before relationship. He met people where they were and walked with them from there.

In 1 Corinthians 12:14, 21-27, Paul uses the metaphor of a body to describe how different parts work together.


This isn't just about tolerating differences, it's about genuinely appreciating them. Instead of spending our energy in critique mode, what if we stepped back and simply marveled at how differently someone approaches life? What if, instead of complaining to them about their differences, we lifted our critiques to God and said, "It's a miracle that You made this person so different from me"?

The hand needs the foot to bring it where it can do its work. We need each other precisely because we're different. Those differences, when honored and validated, make us whole.

People are a lot like the weather, unpredictable, uncontrollable, and sometimes downright messy. You can't control the weather, but you can dress for it. Similarly, you can't control the people in your life, but you can prepare yourself to walk with them through whatever season they're experiencing.

This is where the fruit of the Spirit becomes practical rather than abstract.


These are the qualities that enable us to sit together under the umbrella with another person through life's storms.

Health issues arise. Post-graduation confusion sets in. Family losses occur. Relationships strain. The seasons of life bring inevitable changes. Learning to adapt is a powerful way to show acceptance.

1 Peter 3:8 captures this beautifully:


This combination of qualities creates the posture we need, walking alongside each other with enormous humility and grace, patience and acceptance.

We all carry expectations into our relationships. The danger comes when we confuse our expectations with moral convictions or when we try to play the role of the Holy Spirit in someone else's life.

The Holy Spirit convicts of sin (John 16:8). The Holy Spirit guides and shapes people into the image of Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:18). When we try to manage, fix, or force change in another person, we're stepping into territory that isn't ours. Adapting through the seasons of life often requires us to step back and let the Spirit do His work.

This doesn't mean abandoning our own convictions or compromising on morality. It means distinguishing between core spiritual truths and personal preferences. It means being willing to adjust our expectations without sacrificing our convictions.

All of this finds its foundation in a single, transformative reality: Christ accepted us first.

Romans 5:8 reminds us:


He didn't wait for us to clean up our act. He didn't require us to be acceptable before He accepted us. While we were yet opposed to God, while we had no interest in a relationship with Him, Christ took the lead on acceptance.

He welcomed us. He drew us to Himself. He died for us when we were nowhere near acceptable in our condition before God.

When we truly grasp how fully Christ has accepted us, with all our flaws, failures, and ongoing struggles, it transforms our capacity to accept others.

The relationships in our lives are meant to be more than merely tolerable. They're meant to be great, not in the sense of being easy or conflict-free, but in the sense of being deeply meaningful, mutually strengthening, and reflective of God's love.

Whether in marriage, friendship, family relationships, or workplace connections, we can choose to lean into the great that God intends.

We can choose to marvel rather than critique.
We can choose to adapt rather than demand conformity.
We can choose to accept rather than reject.

Imagine a relationship that has lasted seventy years, the countless changes both people have experienced, the adjustments made, the seasons weathered together. To still be able to say, "I love you now as I did then, through all the changes," is a testimony to the power of acceptance rooted in Christ.

This is what we're called to:


Not settling for "good enough" relationships, but pursuing the greatness God intends, one act of acceptance at a time.

This blog post is based on Pastor Fred’s message, “Accept Each Other.”

If this topic speaks to you, take the next step and watch the full message to go deeper into what it means to accept one another through the ages and stages of life, just as Christ accepted us.

Let God strengthen your relationships by reshaping how you see the people right in front of you.