Remember the Rubik cube? You would turn and change all the faces of the cube in attempt to get it all into place. The best achievers could not only solve the puzzle but do it with great speed. Our world is kind of like that. The times, they ARE a changing… And quickly!
Of course, change is always upon us, but never before at such a break neck speed. The agricultural era revolutionized the ways people produced and harvested food over thousands of years. The industrial age revolutionized the way we produced things and made a living over a mere century or so. The service, technology, space, and information ages seem to have sprung on the heals of each other, demanding people to adjust their way of thinking and coping. The world can change far faster than most people realize. Only eight years ago, no one had a smartphone. You could not access the Internet from wireless mobile devices. Now we can’t escape them. (How many computer and phone systems have you had to learn in your lifetime?!)
Each of these revolutionary ages give us framework for understanding and relating to our world, where we are going in life, what we keep and what we let go – and the speed of change with which we must adapt.
We notice how things change but we don’t always notice how we change in the process of time. Politics has redrawn the maps of numerous countries in my lifetime. Technology has changed the way we view the world – and our neighbors. The advent of the internet and social media brings about the possibility for increased human interactions. At the same time it may be separating us from deeper connections. Moral standards are quietly redefined.
Some compare the speed of change to a snowball rolling downhill, gaining momentum until it threatens to bury us like an avalanche overcomes a sleeping village. Who can keep up with even the most rudimentary amount of information that flows past us every day? Who is succinctly aware of the changing landscape of acceptable moral living?
How do we keep our footing and stand firm in the midst of all this change?
We could turn to change management books or we can seek the counsel of others who have no more clue than us. We can even try to ignore the impact of change in our lives. But the only one who will shine a guiding light on our changing path is the one who never changes, the one solid rock that is the same now as in the beginning and will always be the same. Throughout the whirlwind of changing circumstances, God alone is constant. His faithfulness, love and compassion never change and never fail. He alone transcends time and He alone can guide us in our ever-changing journey. Seek His presence and find wisdom that holds you firm no matter what circumstances may change.
“I the Lord do not change!” Malachi 3:6