CHANGE By Sally I. Kennedy

Standing in the “family photo gallery hall”, it was fun showing the kids pictures of their mom when she was a teenager. I asked them to guess at who some of the others were, aunts and uncles, cousins. I showed them my grandma in her first bathing suit ( a long one-piece, wool) and my mom driving her first car ( a model-T). They were
intently trying to put all of this together, when we came to what looks like another old-timey photograph. I love this picture of my husband, Ben, and me taken not long after we were married. It was at a booth, at the county fair, where they provided costumes of your choice.

The five year old was excited because he knew that he knew who that was. He planted his feet firmly, and with great confidence, stated, “It’s George Washington!”

I laughed so hard I almost fell over. Then I realized of course they had never seen Ben when his hair was brown, and he’d changed. Oh boy, have we changed! Looking through the hall montage renewed that reality. I laughed again, thinking, “No wonder they don’t recognize who these people are in earlier photos!”

Later I was telling Ben about it, and I got to thinking, change is part of life. Everyone and everything is continually and constantly changing in some way. Except God, and His unchanging Word. He is the ONLY constant, consistent, un-changing One.

In the first chapter of James, the Word says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

Thomas Chisholm, who penned the words for the wonderful hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness *, was born in a log cabin in Kentucky. The song “was simply the result of the author’s morning by morning realization of God’s personal faithfulness”. Great is Thy faithfulness, oh God, my Father; there is no shadow of turning with thee. Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not. As Thou has been, Thou forever will be.

“He is the living God, and he will endure forever.” (Daniel 6:26). Yes, there is no turning, no changing with the Lord God. He is always the same, yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)

That is good news.