Ch-ch-ch-changes

Lindsay Masi, Director of Spiritual Formation, offered this outstanding devotion at our weekly staff meeting yesterday. I hope you find it as meaningful as we did. - Chip

Change. It is inevitable. It is necessary. It is hard and sometimes not very fun. We can change our clothes, our habits, our jobs, our relationships, and we can even change our minds. Sometimes change is good and can be exhilarating and empowering. Many times, change comes with challenge. We had a coach at the gym who always reminded us, “If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you.” But what happens when the change isn’t wanted or the challenge isn’t welcomed? How do we keep going?

I am hesitant to admit it, but as I creep up on my final month of pregnancy, I have moments where I feel resistant to the change that awaits my family and me. Even as I write this, I feel a huge amount of guilt for admitting my perinatal anxiety. But, as someone who finds great comfort in the ability to control certain aspects of my life, I know I am entering a phase in which there will be little I can control. This change feels like the most insurmountable challenge I’ve yet to face. This baby is going to change everything, without much of my say. In fact, I keep hearing Sam Cooke singing (ok, if I am totally honest, it is really Gavin DeGraw singing Sam Cooke), “A change is certainly gonna come… whether I am ready or not, whether I like it or not.”

I know that I am not the only person who is experiencing a transition in life. We all have so much going on, from moving, to starting new jobs or leaving jobs we love, to the death of a loved one, to kids moving out, and so very much more.

So how do we hold the space for this and where does our faith fit into welcoming these ch-ch-ch-changes? The Bible is filled with stories about people who received change from God. Let me remind you of two.

First there was Abraham. God told Abraham to leave everything he ever knew, his land, his family, and his home, for something new and unknown. Abraham embraced this change and put his trust in God. He faithfully went. I’m not certain how much anxiety he had or how scared he was, but he did it anyway.

Then I think about Mary. An angel told Mary that she would experience the greatest change of her life and she completely surrendered any control she had. And she accepted it with grace by saying, “I am the servant of the Lord….”

There are so many others such as Moses, Ruth, Peter, and Paul, who put their trust in God in times of transition.

Change isn’t easy, but it’s something everyone experiences. Being resistant only makes it more difficult. The good news is that God is with us along the way… whatever our change is. My prayer is that we can harness the trust and faithfulness of servants like Abraham and Mary and embrace our challenges to change us for the better, even when it feels difficult and not as we would expect.

There is a song by Lauren Daigle that moves me to tears sometimes. It says, “When You don't move the mountains I'm needing You to move, when You don't part the waters I wish I could walk through, when You don't give the answers as I cry out to You…I will trust, I will trust, I will trust in You.”

So, here’s to trusting a God whose love remains unchanging, even in the face of our biggest challenges. May you continue to walk in love, peace, and hope. Amen.