Changed Lives Show God Is Real
Month 9: The Spirit's Power for Witness · Why We Believe
Today's Scripture
Read together: Galatians 5:24-25
24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk in step with the Spirit.
Memory Verse
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”— Galatians 5:22-23 (BSB)
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: Psalms 127-129
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (Around Day 264 of 365 — "Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.")The Heart of It
Today is a "Why We Believe" day, so let's ask a real question. How do we know the Holy Spirit is actually doing something, and not just our imagination? Paul gives a powerful clue in these two short verses. He says people who belong to Jesus "have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires." That means the old selfish habits get put to death. Then he adds, "Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk in step with the Spirit." In other words, the proof that the Spirit is real shows up in changed living. A person who used to be cruel becomes gentle. A person ruled by anger learns patience. That kind of change doesn't happen by accident. And it's evidence you can actually see.
Think about it like this. When a doctor wants to know if medicine is working, she doesn't just ask how you feel. She looks for real change in the body. It's the same with faith. One of the strongest reasons to believe Christianity is true is the millions of lives it has genuinely changed for the better, across every country and century. Former addicts set free. Enemies who forgave. Fearful people made bold. These aren't fairy tales. They're testimonies. Of course, changed lives alone don't prove every detail of the faith, because people change for many reasons. That's why we also have history, evidence for the resurrection, and the trustworthy Word of God. But a transformed life is real evidence, and it is the most personal kind. When you let the Spirit grow His fruit in you, your own changed heart becomes a reason others can believe.
Around the Table
When the Holy Spirit helps you stop being grumpy and start being kind, that's God doing something real inside you. And people can see it!
Let's do it: Think of one way you've gotten kinder or braver since last year. Say, "Thank You, Holy Spirit, for changing me!"
"Crucified the flesh" means letting Jesus put our old selfish habits to death. What is one old habit you'd love the Spirit to help you put to death?
Let's talk: Why is a changed life harder for someone to argue with than a clever speech?
Changed lives are real evidence, but they don't stand alone. We pair them with the resurrection, history, and Scripture. We live by the Spirit as a gift, and we walk in step with the Spirit as our daily, willing response.
Let's go deeper: If someone said, "People in every religion change too," how could you answer honestly and still point to what's unique about the Spirit's work in Jesus?
💬 Conversation Starter
Who is someone you know whose life clearly changed after they started following Jesus? What is different about them?
🛡️ Defending the Faith
When someone says, "I don't see how God is real," here is a gentle, confident answer. "Have you ever seen someone's whole life change for the better? An addict set free, or an angry person become peaceful? The Bible says that's the Holy Spirit at work. And it's happened to millions of people, including some I know." Real change is evidence we can point to. We share it "with gentleness and respect" (). It's not a knockout punch. It's an honest invitation to look closer. And we pair it with the deeper proof of Jesus' resurrection.
For Dad · Go Deeper
The "argument from changed lives" is sometimes dismissed as merely subjective. But it carries real weight when handled with care. J. Warner Wallace was a former atheist and a homicide detective. He came to faith partly by examining the radically transformed disciples and the unbroken chain of changed lives that followed. He weighed it all like testimony from a witness in court. The caution we owe our older children is intellectual honesty. Changed lives are corroborating evidence. They are strongest when joined to the historical case for the resurrection, not a proof that stands alone. But the most persuasive exhibit you will ever offer your kids is closer than any book. It's whether your life is visibly different because of Christ. Verse 25 names the daily call. We who "live by the Spirit" must choose, each day, to "walk in step with the Spirit." Let them watch you choose it.
Draws on: J. Warner Wallace, Cold-Case Christianity.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, thank You that You really change people. And thank You that You're changing us. Make the difference in our lives so clear that others see You in it. Help us walk in Your Spirit every day, not just feel Him sometimes. In Jesus' name, amen."
A life genuinely changed by Jesus is something no one can argue away. And God wants mine to be one of them.