Jesus Is the Same

Take a walk through an appliance store sometime and notice the new technology since you purchased your refrigerator or stove or dishwasher. After our fire last year, we discovered that Microwaves now have buttons on them, instead of just one dial.

Have purchased a television lately? Prepare yourself. Get ready to hear things like HDTV and Blu-ray. (Don't ask me, but I know a guy who can help you.) I wonder what my Dad would think if he could watch Bonanza in HD? He just wanted to see it in color.

What about your telephone? Can you remember a rotary dial? What about a party line? The cell phone I now own can be held in my palm and it can do more and hold more information that the first two or three computers I owned. Can you remember what it was like not to have a cell phone? Did you know there was such a time?

Some of you drive automobiles that talk to you. Someone thousands of miles away can tell you your location, when and where to make your next turn, how much fuel is in your tank, and should you have an accident they can tell what kind of accident it was. Do you remember when most cars had no seat belts in them?

People change too. Have you noticed? While sorting through some old photographs my children had a good time kidding me about some of the clothes that I wore during my college days. I explained to them that that really was the style. That did not change their opinion. Before you make fun of me, dig out your box of old photos and see what your hair looked like twenty years ago ... or five years ago.

Life is full of change. Most are good. Most are for the better. Most are enjoyable once we get used to them. I do not know anyone who wants to go back to the days of black and white TVs, no remote, test patterns at midnight, and only three channels to choose from. I have not heard anyone say, "I wish my car still had that clear plastic cover over the seats that got so hot and stuck to you in the summer."

Our bodies change — don't worry, I'm not going any further with that thought. Our families change. Our health conditions change. Organizations change, or they disappear. We change mentally. We change spiritually. We change intellectually. Our governments change.

Change is inevitable. Most of us would not want our spiritual life to be where it was when we first came to an understanding of God's story. Still, change can be difficult. The more we resist it, the more difficult it is, and the faster things seem to change. Even those of us who like change can only take so much before it begins to overwhelm us.

In a world that is constantly changing it is good to know that one thing does not change. "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8 NIV).

As you are faced with changes coming at you faster than you can comprehend, focus on Jesus. Before you lose your bearings and feel overwhelmed, focus on Jesus. When you long for something that is stable, solid, and unchanging, focus on Jesus. If you find yourself paralyzed by fear and overwhelmed by change, focus on Jesus. He does not change. He is the same yesterday and today and forever.