Staying Open to Change

Today was a very important day in the history of my church as we (the congregation) confirmed a new pastor, ending a transition period which lasted nearly a year. This time was a trying one in the life of the church as we prayed daily for God's guidance in our search, all the while continuing the mission which God has bestowed upon us as a group of believers in His word.

The way the pastor selection process works is not unlike many other types of job interviews. First a pastor search committee was formed, representing all sorts of different members. They then created a persona of the ideal pastor based on scripture and the specific needs of our congregation, which was used in identifying and narrowing down the list of potential candidates. Once this list was shortened to just eight candidates, they moved to cut the list to the top three. In a truly miraculous occurrence, all the members of the search committee ended up listing the same man as their first choice on their individual lists. Thus, there was no need to shorten the list, as the selection was unanimous.

This morning that man was invited to come preach to our combined service, after which we all voted yes or no, as whether to confirm him as our new pastor. With nearly a thousand people in attendance, it was again a unanimous yes. I'm very excited to have a new pastor and I know God is going to do great things at my church through his leadership, but I couldn't help but reminisce of our former pastor and my time at the church since I joined freshman year in college.

Change can come as both a relief and an unsettling thing. I suppose it can be unsettling because change implies newness and a new direction. Of course it can be either bad or good, but I think as fellow believers change is important in our lives. God uses it to alter our direction in life, to bring us closer to Him. Without it, we would be lost in the monotony of the boring and routine motions of life. It's like a ship that is sailing blindly through the fog when a light from a lighthouse appears amongst the mist. The captain can either choose to accept the change in navigation and correct the course of his ship, or allow it to continue in its present heading and risk ruin. So regardless of the situations surrounding change in our lives, let's always remember to keep it in God's perspective and approach it with an open heart. If we close ourselves to change, we close ourselves to His change in our lives.