I idolize familiarity in a big way. I know this because of how I respond to change. Instead of taking deep breaths and trusting God, I take deep breaths and start to panic. Deep hallow breaths leave me gasping for air. Afraid and terrified of the unfamiliarity that the change has brought. I dig my heels down and refuse to budge. What do I do? I am terrified, left grasping for the slightest sense of stability that I thought was still there as if anything in this world is actually stable. I run away from change as though I can actually escape it.
But I do know a God who never changes, and when I panic and start to run around looking for worldly stability, God looks at me and says, "Sweet daughter, I am right here. Run to me! I am the only thing that will never change in your life. I am the only thing that is constant, steady, and sure. Run to me!" We need him when we go to sleep and nothing has changed or when we wake up and everything has changed. Maybe hearing a friend has died, your boyfriend of seven years broke up with you last night, we have a new president, or you are unexpectedly pregnant. We need him in every moment of our lives. "He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made” (Psalm 145:8–9). He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow (Hebrews 13:8). He is the same God Abraham, Moses, David, Mary, Paul, and I share. He is unchanging through the ages and we can trust him and find rest in him. He is our rock, unchanging, steady, and strong, what a simple analogy for such a profound characteristic.
As a disciple of Christ, I always want to find myself in a posture of humility. I want to learn and grow and be conformed to his image. A place where I leave my hands wide open saying, "God, when change inevitably comes help me accept it humbly." When I find myself so easily prone to just panic in the face of change, whether I feel like I am sinking in a deep ocean or splashing in a puddle, I want to desire to go to God in prayer. Expressing my fears, hopes, desires, and trusting him with them knowing that he is sovereign. I desire to run to his word and memorize scripture and find rest in his immutability. I desire not to neglect these spiritual disciplines and in fact, cling to them as the primary ways to draw closer to God rather than grasping for the false "stability" this world tries to offer me. I desire to surround myself with the community of Christ by serving in my local church, fellowshipping with them, and not isolating myself. Community encourages us to faithfulness and godliness.
Change is a given. In this life, we will experience change constantly, some good and some really really bad. But we also have a God who is unchanging. He is gracious. He is loving. He is constant. He is long-suffering. He is kind. He will be with you forever and never change even though we literally change every day. We need not fear. Cling to him, he is an anchor in the waves. Do not give in to the idol of familiarity. Don't give in so easily to despair, trust the rock of ages, His character is eternal.