Change: New school, new home, new job, new president, new pastor, new friends, new car. Unemployment, illness, death. Change is all around us in our lives; we can’t avoid change. Change brings fear. But do we really need to be afraid? How can we avoid the anxiety and fear that change brings? Can we even embrace change and grow because of it???
The following “Pastor’s Ponderings” from Pastor Jim appeared in our March newsletter…
Change is Inevitable…
Some 500 years before the birth of Jesus a Greek philosopher is credited as saying:
“Change is the only constant in life.” 
Heraclitus is correct. We can always count on change. If anyone reading this needs proof I would invite us to look in a mirror and then look at a picture of us from 10 years ago. Yes, change is a constant. I feel safe in saying that I don’t think any of us still wear clothes that we wore in 1975, nor do we drive the same automobile we drove in 1980. As we enter the month of March we are reminded that winter will change into spring. Indeed, changes are constant.
Why Resist the Inevitable?
It is perplexing how it is so obvious that there is much fretting, fear, and resistance over change. Why resist the inevitable? For some, change can appear as a threat promoting fear, worry, and uncertainty. As we look at the world around us, there is much change taking place.
However, sometimes change can be good. Changing an unhealthy lifestyle can result in better health. Changing jobs or professions can actually result in an increase in earning potential and a better life for our families. Changing how we think, treat, or speak to others can actually have positive effects upon others. There are so many examples of how change can be good, far too many to mention here.
God’s Still There, Even in the Midst of Change
May I submit that while we experience change in life, God does not change. Isn’t it good to know that while things change, life changes, circumstance changes, that our great God doesn’t change? The witness of Scripture affirms this:
Jeremiah is inown as the “weeping” prophet”, but he could exclaim (in Lamentations 3:22-23)…
“The Lord’s loving kindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
The prophet Malachi records (in Malachi 3:6)…
“For I, the Lord, do not change;
James 1:17 also reminds us…
“Every good gift, every perfect gift, comes from above.
These gifts come down from the Father, the creator of the heavenly lights, in whose character there is no change at all.”
Fear Can Loose it’s Grip, even in the Midst of Change
With these great words of hope, why should we fear or resist change? Why not walk into the future trusting that God is holding the past, 
present, and future in the palm of His hands? The testimony of Scripture is that God’s love for us, God’s grace and mercy, never changes. God remains faithful and never changes His love for you and me. This word serves as an encouragement to all of us that as we all go through change, we can rest comfortably and patiently in the God who does not change. The hymn writer Thomas Chisolm wrote in his hymn about God,
“Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not. As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.”
So changes will continue to come, but we do not need to fear. God is faithful, does not change, and will always be abiding with us. We can walk into the future and live our lives with confidence and peace.
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