Change and Hope

At a meeting recently, the speaker challenged those present to identify those preset, standardized responses we have to certain problems and, when the moment of reaction comes, allow the Spirit to generate an unprecedented response which, ostensibly, is more Christ-like than those aforesaid responses we seem programmed to come up with.

I had an opportunity to think about this in the cold of the moment, and this is what I learned.

I don't like change. Variety, yes; alterations to my routine, no. I've joked before that my idea of vacation would be a week wherein I worked a mere 40 hours, and nothing unusual happened. No kids got sick, no unexpected appointments...just plain old routine. I wouldn't want that every week, mind you, but once or twice a year would go a long way towards reducing my risk of a heart attack. Unfortunately for me, my wife's idea of vacation involves at least one of the following: 1) driving through at least five states, 2) voluntarily surrendering the use of most modern amenities ("camping"), or 3) spending a sum of money larger than the GDP of several African nations. Okay, enough about vacationing.

I don't like change because it introduces heretofore unquantified variables into the equation of life. As an analytical person, I receive security and comfort from understanding what is going on around me. But changes throw all that for a loop. Why does that procedure that has stood the test of time have to be done differently? Why does that teaching which worked well for others have to be revisited? Why does that friendship which had been free and beneficial have to become complicated?

In my better moments, I might even recognize that the change is good. Sometimes. If I was really in the zone, I might see the change as an opportunity to get elected President. But usually, my initial response is an anxious one.

So that's my initial response. Can't we do any better than that?

While seeing the initial response coming on recently, I remembered the first paragraph. Hmmmm. The Spirit reminded me that I am not as those who have no hope. In that anxiety-inducing moment of realizing there are factors I don't understand and can't quantify, I can receive security and comfort from knowing that everything is working together for good. Everything. Like the master conductor, everything in my experience is being coordinated for one purpose: my improvement. Change is God's vehicle for introducing something better. That's pretty cool, and I think I can live with that.

So here's to change, and here's to hope. Its all in God's hands now.