JUST THINKING: The Challenge of Change
As I listened to a conversation last week among some older gentlemen, I was prompted to consider some thoughts each shared. Their subject was change. Most of them were adamant — they don’t adjust to change very well. As a result, I was just thinking about the challenge of change.
Life is full of change. Think about that for a moment.
• Situations change — Single people get married. Babies bring change to that household. Children grow up, move out and marry. That first couple soon find themselves as grandparents.
• People change — Their appearance changes over the years. Their habits change, some are good and some bad. Their circles of friends change.
• Society changes — When I was young, growing up in a small town was easy going. We never locked our house or our automobiles. We trusted our neighbors. Our dogs were our only security alarms. But today things have changed. Our homes are locked, our vehicles are in a garage. We have security alarms and motion lights. And honestly, today we don’t know who to trust. Change is a challenge.
• Churches face change — Back in the early part of the 20th century, the music of a church service was accompanied by an organ. Pianos were for movie houses and bars. Even guitars found no place in the church. Songs were sung from sight reading the notes of the music and the lyrics from hymnals. Today, few people have a clue about reading music and the lyrics of the hymns and songs are viewed on screens. For some worshipers, the move to contemporary music has certainly been a challenge. But many worshipers struggle with the challenge of change from translations of the Bible. Some love the newer versions, while others hold on to the older ones. May we never forget that it is the message of God to people that matters most. We sometimes forget that there are hundreds of languages into which the Bible has been translated.
• Not all change is bad — Consider the change from a condemned sinner to a converted saint. When we place our trust in Christ, a great and beneficial change is made. The old self is made into a new creation. God’s Word is assurance of that statement — “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (II Cor. 5:17 NIV). I love what the hymn writer said about such change: “What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought since Jesus came into my heart; I have light in my soul for which long I have sought, since Jesus came into my heart.”
• Amid change there is a Constant —Some change is good; some is not. That fact alone reminds us of the challenge of change. But while we are surrounded by change in so many ways, we can rejoice that we serve One who never changes.
When the Pilgrims came to this continent they were challenged by change. As the pioneers moved westward, they faced multiple kinds of change. As our world has seen so many wars, the challenge of change has been encountered. As new inventions, amazing technologies and advanced education have brought various changes, still there is the One who never changes: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and to day and for ever” (Heb. 13:8).
I’m amazed that, amid all the changes in life, we depend on the constants. A few nights ago, I looked into the sky and my focus was on the North Star. It’s the same star that aided the ancient mariners, the wagon trains of pioneers and the astronomers of today.
When so many things change so rapidly, don’t lose hope and don’t worry. We have a Constant Guide. His name is Jesus.
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Dr. Tom Mitchell
Dr. Tom Mitchell pens a column titled, Just Thinking, in which he addresses many topics relative to the Baptist Missionary Association. His Trailblazers series provides biographies of many BMA trailblazers from the past.
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