“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under Heaven.” —Ecclesiastes 3:1 NIV
Change. Some desperately want it; others stay away from it. Companies say they will never survive unless they adapt to it, while I imagine most of us would simply like to find a little more of it under our couch cushions.
I find that there are few times throughout the year where change is more at its peak than the late summer to early fall period we are entering now. Cooler nights, leaves turning color, kids heading back to school, fall sports starting up, and overall there is that smell of Autumn in the air that produces a strange mix of nostalgia and renewal all in the same breath.
As people, we most often equate change with a trend towards something different, a movement away from how we have typically been doing things up until this point. In our fast-paced, “must get there first” culture, such words as contentment or consistency are frowned upon, or dare I say even looked at as antonyms to change. Why is that? Is it really such a terrible thing to be able to rest easy at night simply satisfied with the things God has currently blessed us with?
As Solomon so pointedly tells us further into Ecclesiastes chapter 3, God ordains a time for everything in the life of man. However, as fallible beings we cannot seem to understand that all these changes take place within the larger and incomprehensible realm of eternity that, to paraphrase Solomon, God has placed within all of our hearts and still we cannot grasp it! We are so worried about missing out on the next best thing or fearing we will fall short of one or another’s limitless expectations that we often forget that God is in complete control. As his children, He wants to cultivate and mold our hearts.
This often means slowing down our changing lives long enough to hear His gentle and loving voice. If we don’t, it is as if we are running through the Louvre blindfolded or driving through the Rockies with our eyes closed (please don’t do that, it will cause you to miss God’s creation and it is dangerous).
As Christians we can walk through this life knowing that we praise a God who is the same today as He was yesterday. I take complete solace in the fact that my soul is in the hands of One who does NOT change. His love, promises, and statutes are the same as they have always been and are just as perfect today as when they were first spoken.
As growth groups start up again soon, I find peace knowing that I have been blessed to be part of a body of believers who are committed to a study and a growth in the Word of our Heavenly Father. Our church fully embraces the true and consistent word of God and for that there is no need for change.
Please know that we are praying for this congregation individually, as well as corporately, and we pray that this year of growth groups presents a fresh opportunity to delve into the living and unchanging Word of God with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
Justin