Coffee has been a mainstay in my life since I met and married my Italian-English husband fifteen years back.

His family were cranking out the espressos before I was a twinkle, so adopting coffee seemed a natural foray into my new extended family.

But lately, my tummy has been adverse to coffee. Too many bitter and burnt coffees have led to my resignation that I should adopt black caffeinated tea as an alternative. This feeds my caffeine addiction and is still pleasant enough to drink. Earl and Lady Gray have casually made their way to my coffee table, replacing bitterness with sweet floral notes and flavour.

Change. It comes upon us unexpectedly.

Change. It sometimes results in sweet floral notes.

Change. It sometimes results in the loss of something once held dear.

Change. Like it or not, it is inevitable and ironically, the only constant we have of this world.

I actually quite like change. In the flux there is a new excitement; a newness and novelty that breaks into the doldrums of life with unexpected surprise.  I realise though, that not all change is as pleasant as that.

I am generally an optimist so change presents itself as an opportunity to overcome new challenges, explore new delights and learn new things resulting in a greater understanding of myself and the world around me.

Change from beyond results in change within.

When approached with hopefulness and determination, this is a good thing. But not all change is pleasant. Sometimes change comes upon us in ways that we find difficult to resolve.

The friends we have invested in, move away and we are no longer in their daily lives. The jobs we have invested in, have structural changes because the company wants to take a new direction and your role now seems obsolete.

Causes, institutions, leaders, communities, the world around us; they change.

Change can disappoint, let down and challenge our values and belief systems. Change can hammer us into the ground.

There is one thing though, that never changes. One person. Who fortunately, lives on the inside of us. He is the King of the world, Lord of the Universe, The Everlasting and Unchanging One. The great I AM.

Jesus Christ… is the same yesterday and today and forever.  Hebrews 13:8

 “For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.  Malachi 3:6

God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfil it?  Numbers 23:19

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.  James 1:17

The One we serve, the One we belong to, He never changes! We can absolutely trust, rely and depend upon the promise that He is who He says He is, and that is never going to change.

Knowing that God never changes, in a world filled with uncompromising and unforgiving change, a work replete with hurt, disappointment and brokenness, is a reminder to stand strong and stay firm. To know that who we are In Him will never change because He will never change.

With that anchor as a steadfast hope for our soul, we can lean into Him, and trust that in all of the chaos and uncertainty, He is faithful and will give us all we need to deal with the change around and inside of us.

The change that is out of our control is never beyond His control, and as we look unto Him, He guides us through the hurt, disappointment and pain that often comes from change. He will also celebrate, revel in and delight with us as we enjoy the sweet floral notes.

The One who never changes, sometimes allows the change – sometimes orchestrate the change – and He walks with us as we change through the change.