Reacting to Change

Reacting to change can feel overwhelming when life shifts faster than we can adjust, leaving us unsure of what to hold onto. This article points us back to the unchanging God, whose Spirit and Word guide us steadily through every uncertain season.

We may no longer have God’s visible cloud above us, but we do have His invisible Spirit within us and His infallible Word in our hands.

How do we respond to change that shakes us and turns our world upside down? Change that causes fear and frustration. Changes in our circumstances that force us to reexamine ourselves and evaluate what might be changing in our own heart and mind. In the face of such challenges, how can we not wonder whether God has forgotten about us?

It starts by changing our focus—by not looking at our circumstances or ourselves—and zeroing in on God.

The best way to deal with difficult changes in your life is to remember that God never changes and to refocus your attention and energy on Him.

How do we know God does not change? Because of Scripture.

Through the prophet Malachi, God reminded the Israelites that their continuation as a people was dependent on God’s stability: “For I am the Lord, I do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob” (Malachi 3:6 NKJV).

The book of Numbers made the same claim through rhetorical questions: “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (23:19 NKJV).

The author of Hebrews was more direct, simply stating, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (13:8 NKJV).

And the apostle James wrote, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” (1:17 NKJV).

The message is clear: God does not change. Yet you may be wondering, What does that mean for me? How does God’s character help me when my life is changing more quickly than I can keep up?

As an answer, think of a compass. Because they are mainly used for outdoor activities, compasses can typically take a lot of punishment. You might drop one in a stream or a river, for example, and send it tumbling along with the current for miles. Or you might drop one during a mountain hike and watch it bounce and skitter down the slope.

Yet no matter what you do to that compass—no matter how much you shake it, drop it, drag it, spin it, or throw it—when you open the lid and look at the face, it will still point you to true north. In other words, changing circumstances don’t affect a compass’s distinguishing feature.

North is still north.

Similarly, your changing circumstances don’t affect God’s character. And for that reason, you can rely on God to guide you through those circumstances even when everything in your life seems shaken and stirred.

God is still God. He is the Rock of stability to which you can anchor when everything else is uncertain. Because He has not forgotten you.

Not only is God unchanging in His character, but He actively guides us through the circumstances of our lives. Once again, Scripture reveals that truth:

Proverbs 3:5–6 promises that as we trust the Lord with all our hearts and acknowledge Him in all our ways, He will guide us in all our paths.

Psalm 23 says our Shepherd will lead us in right paths.

Isaiah wrote, “Thus says the Lord … ‘I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you by the way you should go’” (48:17).

Perhaps the best visual reminder of God’s guidance occurs in the book of Numbers. In chapter 9, God’s leadership among the children of Israel took visible shape in the form of a mysterious cloud, which at night turned into a pillar of fire (vs. 15–17).

Whenever the clouds lifted from above the tent, the Israelites set out; whenever it settled, the Israelites camped.

Once again you might object, thinking, That was great for the Israelites, but what about me? Where is my cloud when I need God to guide me?

It’s true that we no longer have God’s visible cloud above us, but we do have His invisible Spirit within us and His infallible Word in our hands. We have His providential ordering of our circumstances and His promise to direct us in all our ways.

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Excerpted from God Has Not Forgotten You by Dr. David Jeremiah, ©2021 published by Thomas Nelson Publishers.

When life feels uncertain, anchor your faith in God’s truth.
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