Commentary
Even if we do nothing, everything changes
By Carmen Fowler, The Layman, January 26, 2010
Lamentations 3:23 assures us that God’s mercies are new every morning. So, what’s new with you?
Carmen Fowler
“Even if I stay right where I am, everything changes.” That was the assessment of my 5- year-old nephew as we watched the Merry-Go-Round at a small amusement park in Alaska last summer. He is right. Even if we stay right where we are, if we stay on the straight and narrow, if we resist turning to the right or the left, if we do not advance and if we do not retreat, even if we do nothing, everything changes.
If we do not advance on the Enemy, by standing still we will allow the Enemy to gain ground. If we do not speak the truth, by saying nothing people will assume that we agree with those who speak falsehood. If we fail to adapt the means by which we communicate, we will miss the current that is sweeping traditional journalism.
As we approach the 2010 General Assembly meeting of the Presbyterian Church (USA) in July, we anticipate change. There are unprecedented changes proposed to our Form of Government. There are changes proposed to the definitions of ordination and marriage. There are changes proposed to our confessional standards. There are changes proposed in our relations with Israel. Even if we stay right where we are, things change.
When confronted with change, we have three choices. We can accept, avoid or alter.
We can simply accept the changes wrought by others and be swept along by every wind of doctrine and every whim of culture. Like a cork in a maelstrom, we will forfeit all control and be nothing but pawns.
The second option is avoidance. This “head in the sand” approach does nothing to affect the reality of the changes beings made. It may provide for some temporary solace and a false sense of peace for a period of time, but at some point you will have to come up for air. The only real option is to engage the challenges of our time with all the resources God has placed within our reach and work together to alter things.
The goal is to work in cooperation with the Holy Spirit to bring things into greater conformity with the will of God as revealed in the Scriptures. As redeemed people, we are called to a life that is continually being changed, from one degree of glory to another, into the image of Christ. As the Church, we are called to work to reveal to others the truth and grace of the Gospel, to make disciples of Jesus (which is a radical change in a human life), and to be a provisional demonstration of the Kingdom of God to the world.
The Presbyterian Lay Committee is committed to being an agent of change in the PCUSA and in the world. We will not avoid the realities in our common life that need to change and we will not simply accept changes without scrutiny. We will seek to alter the course of our denomination by speaking the truth in love, reporting on the actions of those who are called to serve the church through its higher governing bodies and keeping you informed about the changes proposed by your fellow Presbyterians.
We will stand firm, but we will not stand still.
You hold in your hands one simple demonstration of how things have changed. In order to provide information to you in a more frequent and timely manner, we have reformatted The Layman. It will now arrive in a carrier envelope and be delivered to you every five weeks. Articles will be necessarily shorter, but full articles and complete analysis are available at www.www.layman.org and you are invited to access that dynamic resource for daily updates.
We are also changing the way we go about asking for and raising resources to support this ministry. The directors of the Presbyterian Lay Committee are committed to participating in “The Revolution in Generosity” that is changing the way Christian non-profit ministries communicate about stewardship with their ministry partners. Henceforth, we will seek to equip our readers to be generous toward God and the advancement of His Kingdom purposes. As God directs the overflow of that generosity in the direction of the Lay Committee, we will be grateful.
Returning to Lamentations 3:23, the verse not only says that God’s mercies are new every morning, it also assures us that His faithfulness is great. Indeed, even as everything in the world around us changes, even as the seas roar and mountains shift and wars rage, God is the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow. Nothing surprises Him. Nothing catches God off guard. He is not wringing His hands. He holds the whole world and all of human history in the hollow of His hand and He holds you in His heart.
We will stand firm, lifting high the name of Jesus, in the knowledge of the great faithfulness of God even as everything around us changes.
With you, for Him,
Carmen
Carmen Fowler is president of the Presbyterian Lay Committee and executive editor of its publications.