Again, nothing in their lives has really changed much, just the perception of reality and being. Alas, more often than not, once this initial high is over, the person falls back into the same of patterns of complacency, and depression. Salvation through Jesus Christ is anything but a mind cult. The process of change, of liberation, of grace and conversion takes a lifetime, assumes built in slip-ups and backsliding, and demands constant nourishment. Perhaps our own monastic life is a good example of this.
Youthful zeal wears off rather quickly, just as the crucible of purgation beings quickly.
Not a lot happens on the physical plane the same old brothers, the same old problems day in and day out. And yet, through perseverance, through the willingness to grow in virtue, the person is changed because his way of being has changed. He becomes more patient, more charitable, broader minded, all the while becoming more humble and free to admit that he is a sinner. The crooked paths may not be straight as an arrow, but their tortuous curves are not nearly as bad as we first thought, in fact might can actually make the journey a little more interesting. Just allow me to see that my trials and difficulties are really the sign of your favor and blessing.