The phrase “the winds of change” stirs emotions within us. While there is some excitement at the thought, the unknown tends to fill us with fear. While we do not know or understand the changes with their impact, we do know they will disrupt our life.
Here is a solid truth: a life of faith will always lead to a disruption of the status quo. As sinful patterns are let go, what was once normal is replaced with the life of Christ. A familiar Bible character illustrates this to us. Noah believed in God and lived it out through his interactions with his family and community. His faith would lead to a major disruption of his life.
God told Noah that a flood was coming, so Noah had to build an ark and gather the animals. Then Noah spends 40 days and nights on the giant zoo boat while it is raining, followed by another 150 days after the rain stops.
But Genesis 8:1 points out that God remembers Noah and his family. It reads, “But God showed concern for Noah. He also showed concern for all the wild animals and livestock that were with Noah in the ark. So God sent a wind to sweep over the earth. And the waters began to go down.” (NIrV) God was concerned for Noah; He knew this lifestyle was not healthy for Noah, anyone, or anything else. When the time was right, God sent the wind to change the situation and direction of the lives floating in the ark.
God sent the wind at the right time when the change was needed. After forty days, I am sure Noah and the family had developed a routine. While the conditions may not have been ideal, I am sure there was comfort in what had become familiar. The wind brought change, a new anticipation for the day when the waters had evaporated and they could exit the ark. Exiting the ark would also bring the mystery of a world that was different from the one before they entered the ark. The work of the ark would be done, but that would only make way for the next chapter.
It is no secret that our world is different from before the pandemic. Many of the changes were brewing before it began. Things only shifted fully into focus. And the other certainty is the disruption it has caused. During the pandemic, we were forced into limited contact, and now because we are all frantically playing catch up.
Regardless, the winds of change have howled and are reshaping the landscape of life. To deny the change is to stand by a stagnant puddle, one slowly evaporating as fading of a memory of a great storm’s passing. Time is wasted and lost staring at the puddle. The things God wants to do in us and through us, the things beyond our imagination, the things we would not believe even if God told us, will be found in following the wind that blows wherever it pleases. While it will be new, the voice will be the same. Our surroundings may be unfamiliar and the pathway unknown, but our comfort is in God who is an unchanging presence in our ever-changing lives.