You may have noticed that church has changed in our lifetimes.

The architecture of newer church buildings is radically different from what it was 50 years ago. The songs we sing are different. The way we dress at church is different. So many of the programs have changed.

Change is unsettling for us. We all have favorite songs that mean so much to us. We like predictability. We often struggle when church doesn’t feel or sound like it always has. We need something that stays the same.

Here is the good news for you. The Bible says, “God is the same, yesterday, today, and forever.”

That does not mean that God is like some stubborn old man who will not change His mind. Nor does it mean that the methods and means of worship and service will not change.

What it means is that God is perfect in every way, and he does not need to change. To change would be to admit that improvement was possible. It is not.

He is forever and always the same, and because of his steady nature, we can trust in him.

There are things in my life that I need to change. I have to admit that I don’t like to change. It takes too much effort at times. I would prefer to continue on in the way I have always gone.

But change is both inevitable and essential. The church that does not change will not reach the next generation. The church has changed to reach us. And now we change to reach others.

Thank God for those who are flexible enough to change, and wise enough to know what can never change.

The Lord himself never changes. His Gospel story never changes. And that gives us great stability to know that we can stand, no matter what comes our way.

But I pray we will love the generations to come in such a manner as to make every effort to share the message of God’s love with them, using every means available