Anchored In The Eternal: Navigating Life's Changes With Steadfast Faith And Faithful Obedience

Good morning. It is truly a blessing to be together this morning, gathered as the body of Christ.

We live in a world that is constantly shifting beneath our feet. From the moment we are born until our final breath, life is a relentless process of change. Think about it: our bodies grow and change; relationships evolve, sometimes deepening, sometimes drifting; careers begin, pivot, or end; technologies emerge that reshape our daily lives; the communities we live in transform; and the wider world seems in perpetual flux.

Some changes are anticipated – the turning of the seasons, a child growing up and leaving home, planned retirement. We can prepare for these, to some extent. But many changes are sudden, unexpected, and can feel deeply unsettling: a sudden job loss, a health crisis, a move we didn't want, the unexpected death of a loved one, unforeseen hardships that disrupt everything we thought was stable.

How do we honestly feel when the landscape of our lives shifts so dramatically? When the familiar comforts, the routines we rely on, the security we've built, seem to disappear or change shape? Consider even smaller changes – a major road closure on your usual commute, a new piece of software at work that completely alters your workflow. These minor disruptions can reveal a deeper human tendency to feel unsettled by the unfamiliar, to resist having our "cheese moved."

This morning, I want us to explore this common human challenge by considering a simple, widely known analogy, and then grounding our response – not in mere human resilience – but firmly in the unchanging truth of God's Word.

Many of you may be familiar with a popular short story that uses a simple metaphor to talk about change. It features characters in a maze seeking "Cheese" – a metaphor for what we pursue or depend on (security, success, comfort, a particular outcome, a specific relationship, or even a familiar routine). The maze represents the environment of our lives – the places we inhabit, the circumstances we navigate.

In this story, these characters find a large, abundant supply of Cheese at a place called "Cheese Station C." They are overjoyed and settle in, building their lives around this discovery. They become comfortable, even complacent, assuming this large supply of Cheese will always be there.

But then, one day, the Cheese is gone. It has moved.

The story highlights the vastly different ways the characters react to this sudden and unexpected change. The mice, Sniff and Scurry, are simple and instinctive. They notice the dwindling cheese supply quickly and, when it's gone, they immediately lace up their running shoes and set out into the maze to find new cheese. They don't overanalyze; they just act.

The little people, Hem and Haw, are more complex. They react with disbelief, frustration, anger, and fear. They feel a sense of entitlement to the cheese that was there. They resist the change vehemently, staying at the empty Cheese Station C, hoping the old cheese will reappear, lamenting its absence, rather than venturing into the unknown, potentially scary, maze to search for something new.

Eventually, one of these little people, Haw, begins to realize the futility of staying put. Despite his fear, he makes the conscious choice to leave the empty station and begin searching. He takes small, hesitant steps into the maze, learns from his experiences, overcomes some of his fear by taking action, and gradually finds new cheese. Along the way, he learns valuable lessons about anticipating change, letting go of the past, and the freedom found in movement. Hem, sadly, remains stuck, paralyzed by his fear and resistance.

This simple analogy, while secular in its origin, provides a helpful lens through which to examine our own responses when the "cheese" in our lives – whatever we rely on or value – disappears or changes. When life takes an unexpected turn, how are we, as people of faith, meant to respond? Is it just about adopting a better attitude or personal resilience? No.

Our response to change is fundamentally different because it is rooted in the unchanging character of God. Turn to our anchor text, Hebrews 13:8: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

(Pause)

This is not a casual statement; it is a profound theological truth. Jesus Christ, who is God incarnate, is immutable. He does not change in His nature, His character, His power, His love, or His promises.

I. The Rhythms of Change: A Divinely Ordered Reality

The world described in Scripture is one where seasons change and circumstances shift. Turn with me to Ecclesiastes chapter 3, verses 1 through 8. The Preacher writes:

(Read Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 - ESV)

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

a time to be born, and a time to die;