[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 05/May/2019]
Last month saw the 35th anniversary of my first visit to Horley Baptist Church. My employer moved me from Warwick to Epsom, and Horley turned out to have the only house that I could afford. Those who befriended me at that time will recall that the house required a ‘certain degree of renovation’ but that was something that I could change. Change is an antidote to stagnation. Horley has changed – you can no longer buy tyres at the Jack Firman or park with impunity on the High Street. Horley Baptist has changed – the manse and the church building have changed, pastors and leadership have changed, the style of music has changed, the demographic of the congregation has changed.
Change has its downsides. We can all think of examples when we would have preferred not to change.
- Change is not always beneficial
- Change does not always last
- Change is not always welcome
- Change does not always satisfy
We often speak of a God who never changes. If change is necessary for progress what do we make of a God whose last acclaimed visit was over 20 centuries ago? Does this mean that He is out of date, irrelevant or even obsolete? Is God anti-change?
Consider these words from Daniel chapter 2:
He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. The benefits of God’s changes are always long-lasting and for our good but whether they are welcome and satisfying is up to us.
This period of 35 years represents more than half of my life (so far) and despite the changes HBC has been an example of stability in a life where much else has changed. Henry Lyte also valued the stability of his faith when he wrote these well-known words:
Change and decay in all around I see
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.
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Contributed by Steve Humphreys; © Steve Humphreys