Whenever there is an election, mid-term or otherwise, things change. Sometimes they change for the better. Sometimes they change for the worse.

In those times when they change for the worse or when the results are contested (which seems to be the norm nowadays) it can be helpful to remember what remains constant.

Remembering what is unchanging, what is solid, what is predictable can be a source of comfort and assurance. Our church offers that kind of comfort and assurance because we center ourselves in God.

Who can forget the words of that favorite hymn Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise? “We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree, and wither and perish – but naught changeth Thee.”

The notion that God does not change can be bring comfort. BUT, it can also bring questions. Does God really never change? We are created by God and we change. Why doesn’t God change? Events change things and we adapt. Doesn’t God?

While an unchanging God can bring comfort to some, it can bring distance to others. If God doesn’t change, then God doesn’t really know us. Maybe God doesn’t even care about us. If God did, God would change with us.

I believe God is unchanging. God is a constant. God has no need to change because God has a view of things that is greater than the joys and terrors of this world. God knows that the ultimate endgame is our fulfillment in God’s love. That is guaranteed. The unchanging nature of God reminds me that there is someone who is beyond all of the chaos and I am connected to that “someone.”

At the same time, I think God chooses different ways to come to us. Since we change, it wouldn’t make sense for God to not tailor God’s accompaniment to keep up with our evolving selves. Maybe we once found an intimate connection with God through scripture but that is less the case now. Instead we find God in music or some other faith-enhancing experience. Being limitless and unchanging, means that God can wear many disguises and choose different avenues by which to intersect with our lives!

So no matter how you may be feeling about the outcome of the mid-term elections, know that you belong to a God whose presence is constant and unwavering but who does not hesitate to change the ways by which God is made known.

See you in church,
–Rev. Dominic