Coping with change

An old light bulb joke goes something like this: "How many Methodists does it take to change a light bulb?" The answer: "What do you mean, change?"

I was talking with a member of another church recently and I asked how their fairly newly arrived vicar was getting on. One of the first responses was, "He's changing a lot of things." Just this evening I was reading an article in the Metro newspaper about the new format to the long- running BBC programme "A Question of Sport". I've been a fan of Q.O.S. for all of its 40 years, and I must say that I do have reservations about the new format, not least the fact that one member of each team is now a "personality" rather than a sportsperson. Time will tell whether it proves to be a good move or not (I still think that the BBC should bring back Arlene Phillips to the panel of judges for Strictly!)

The truth is that, for whatever reason, we often find change hard to accept. We struggle when what we have become comfortable with becomes different in some way - it can move us out of our comfort zone, which is difficult to handle.

One of the ways in which we can begin to come to terms with change is to understand that change is a natural element of life. As I look through the window I see that the snow, which has been around for nearly 2 weeks, is slowly beginning to melt away. In two or three months we will see signs of spring. I was looking at some old family photos recently, and it's abundantly clear that we have all changed a great deal over the years!

The other thing we can do if we are struggling to cope with change is to look to the One who does not change. We live in an uncertain, changing, and sometimes frightening world. Yet we can have confidence that in God we have a rock beneath our feet and a sure foundation for life. As hymn-writer Henry Francis Lyte so eloquently puts it,

"Change and decay in all around I see:
O thou who changest not, abide with me!