I’m still struggling with the fact that they’ve stopped teaching cursive writing in most schools. Print? Yes. Script? Not anymore. No longer are children learning how to link the letters of each word in a continuous flow.
But it’s not just the children. When was the last time you hand-wrote a letter? Or put a stamp on an envelope that wasn’t a bill? Even bills and commercial exchanges are being completed via the Internet. This past week, I completed a writing contract with an e-signature and returned it via email.
Just thinking about it makes me feel old. Between this and the perennial struggle to remember the year (anyone else still practicing turning sevens into eights three months into 2018?), I’m acutely aware of the passing of time.
Remember the original television series, Star Trek, from the 1960s? Many of the futuristic tools used on the show are now commonplace in our lives. Personal computers, voice-activated computing (anyone have the newest iPhone?) tablets with styluses, wireless earbuds, and GPS tracking are just a few of the innovations originally imagined for the 23rd century. The future is now.
As the children in our lives grow and mature, they will experience cultural and technological changes at an even faster pace than we have experienced. To help them thrive, we need to teach them that no matter what happens, the one, true, living God is immutable – He never changes. The Bible tells us:
- Psalm 102:27 – “But you remain the same, and your years will never end.”
- Malachi 3:6 – “I the Lord do not change.”
- Hebrews 13:8 – “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
- James 1:17 – “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
Why is it a good thing that God does not change? Because we can rely on Him. We can rely on His unchanging mercy and grace. His unchanging comfort and compassion. And His unchanging guidance and protection.
Even though my world is constantly changing, my God will never change. Now excuse me while I go write a letter…in longhand!
