I've never been a person who particularly likes change, but with the exception of God and His love and salvation, which remain constant, nothing really stays the same and life brings change whether we like it or not. 

Although a sobering thought, with each passing day, everyone gets older and one step closer to the end of his or her life. I have made several trips to the funeral home in recent years (including last night) to pay final respects to folks who, until their passing, were "always there," and who were part of my growing up years. It used to be that most people who died were of my grandparents' generation; more and more it is becoming my parents' generation; in the years ahead, it will mostly be of my generation.  And so it has been for thousands of years.  Until the Lord's return, that's the cycle of life, and death will come to us all. 

It's sad to see people and places from your past vanish from your world. I think of this as I pass my late Grandmother Henson's former home on a daily basis. That house holds so many wonderful memories for me, and while I still have the memories, she is gone and we will never gather as a family there again. We will never pick her up for church or eat her homemade cookies, and there is a sense of loss with that realization. The same is true of my Grandmother Harmon's home. Although she is still alive at 92 and in a nursing home, there will be no more going home for her other than perhaps a brief visit now and again and no more fried chicken Sunday dinners. And that makes me sad. 

I attended my high school class reunion this past weekend. There is a new Watauga High in place now. I recently went inside, but it was foreign to me and held no significance. Our old high school has been razed, but in my mind it is still alive and thriving with all the people I once knew roaming the familiar hallways and classrooms. 

So what's with all this melancholy?  I am a very sentimental person by nature, and I love thinking about history and the past - the way things use to be. But I have to guard against dwelling there and inordinately mourning what once was and placing too much significance on temporal things. God has a forward moving plan for His children, and while He has richly blessed me in the past and given me a treasure chest full of memories, change is inevitable and He has more good things in store for me and a divine purpose to fulfill. 

What brought on these reflections was my continued reading in 1 Thessalonians 4. In verse 13, Paul tells us he does not want us to grieve like the rest of men (unbelievers) who have no hope. He is particularly writing in relation to death, but I think this scripture is applicable to any kind of loss in life. We will naturally feel degrees of grief as people pass on and as memorable places decline and perhaps fall into disrepair or ruin, but, praise God, we don't have to wallow in grief and sink into misery as people with no hope. 

In relation to death, Paul teaches us that, just as Jesus was raised from the dead, those who are dead in Christ will also be resurrected at His second coming. Those who remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet The Lord in the air. "And so we will be with The Lord FOREVER.  Therefore encourage each other with these words."  And what an encouragement that truly is! One day, the cycle of aging and dying and separation will be broken!

"Father, thank you for blessing my life so richly. Thank you for a wonderful childhood and all these past years that have been filled with loving and impactful people. Thank You also for the places that bring back good memories. But thank You even more that You continually have good things in store for Your children - not only for the remaining years on this earth, but eternally. Thank You that, as Your Word says, You have a plan and a hope and a future for us. Thank You for the comfort You extend as the loved and the familiar pass on, and thank You that you give the needed grace and ability to adapt as new things come our way.  Thank You most of all for the hope of eternity through Jesus Christ, and it's in His Name I pray. Amen."