Last week, the weather was warm and windy, the weekend had rainstorms and strong wind, Monday brought low temperatures and snow and all in June. Most people were not surprised or taken back by the drastic changes. Most people would say, “you don’t like the weather, hang around a bit and it will change.” Meteorologist try to predict the weather and have a 50/50 chance of predicting it right. You might say there is an element of uncertainty in the weather and that is certain.
Right now, with the pandemic continuing to work its way through cultural practices we sense the very same idea, the only thing that is certain is uncertainty. The buzz that we hear is about a new normal, yet nobody can define a new normal. There are plenty of ideas about what it means but there is no certainty about how the reactions to the corona-virus will permanently affect the way we live.
Caught in the wave of all of this is the church and what it means to God’s people as a community. How are people viewing the gathering of believers together for worship? It seems to be another plight of uncertainty. Sanitizer, social distancing, group limitations and protocols are set forth and one can barely get the protocols in place and oops, they change again. There is just so much uncertainty. The problem with uncertainty is it tends to prompt fear in people, and fear in people can be detrimental to their physical, mental and emotional well-being. Here is the good news:
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”
Hebrews 13:8
What that means for you and me is spiritual certainty. What happens on this earth, what happens in nations, what happens in cultures and in communities and with the uncertainties they provide we can be confident that there is certainty in our unchanging Savior and Lord. His truth, principles, and promises are not constantly changing like the weather. Pandemics and diseases do not rearrange His rule or dominion or make His sovereignty questionable. We can, with confidence, continue to trust Jesus in every area of our lives, day in and day out. Be encouraged that you can be certain about Jesus never changing.