Big changes. Generally, we like to avoid them, but we can also acknowledge that they might just be part of God’s plan. After all, our God is unchanging, but he most definitely is not unmoving. We can count on both of these truths in the midst of changes that might unsettle us. Perhaps he’s changing us, too! And in his hands that can’t be a bad thing.
Moving to Minneapolis from the Pacific Northwest certainly has been a big change for Pris and me. Among other things, I look around and there are no mountains! “Wait,” I find myself thinking, “Who moved my mountain?” Those who know that I regularly ran and climbed up mountains back in Washington have asked me how I’m doing without them. “I have my mountain,” I tell them. “It’s in my basement.” Actually, it’s a stair-stepper machine. Thankfully, it’s providing me with some of the serious exercise I require, but I’m still seeking out the ways I’ll get my precious out-in-nature-alone-with-God time that I so easily found in the mountains. It was always natural and almost automatic for me. I was surrounded by mountains and they called me. Now, however, for these important self-care needs to be met, for me to find my new “rhythm,” I must thoughtfully try new things. I must be very intentional. Change requires such intentionality. And that intentionality in the midst of change can pay off. Big time.
In his best-selling book “Who Moved My Cheese?” Spenser Johnson explained that because change is constant there’s no reason we can’t anticipate it and be prepared to adapt to it. “The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you find new cheese,” he wrote, and then you can “enjoy the taste of new cheese.”
The Apostle Paul had this to say to the Christians in Ephesus: “Look carefully how you walk. Use your head, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Don’t live carelessly, unthinkingly. Make sure you understand what the Master wants” (5:15-17, The Message).
What does Master Jesus want us, the World Mission Prayer League, to see around us? How does he want us to make the best use of this time? Look around. Times have changed, have they not? Someone has moved our cheese, our mountain, or whatever it is. Allow me to offer just a few things I see “moved.” The steady stream of missionary candidates from multiple Lutheran Bible Institutes ceased to flow some years back. (Who moved our LBI?) Similarly, less common today are the vibrant mission-focused Lutheran congregations where young and old believers alike are taught and led to pray for the unreached harvest fields. (Some might ask: Who moved our young people?) At the same time, sending Christian workers into certain parts of the world has become more complicated, even dangerous. Nothing about this feels easy, natural or automatic. These are big changes! And sure, we would have preferred to avoid them, but doesn’t our unchanging God still have a plan? Doesn’t he still care for the lost? Isn’t he still on the move? Might he be encouraging us to find new ways of fulfilling his call to prayer and missionary service? Might this be a time – just the right time – for being very intentional?
I’m inspired by the words of martyred missionary Jim Elliot: “Wherever you are, be all there! Live to the hilt every situation you believe to be the will of God.” Times of transition and adapting to change are challenging and strenuous, but I love them. They are God-given opportunities to experience his leading and provision afresh. They are times to rethink priorities and be intentional about new ways. I believe now is such a time for the World Mission Prayer League.
This is a time for us to “be all there.” This is a time for us to “live to the hilt.” This is a time for us to come together in prayer. This is a time for us to be very intentional, finding new ways to connect with this generation, those who will pray and those who want to serve the Lord in a radical way. This is a time for us to be intentional about living out the vision and values of our founders – vision and values God has given us – but now in a world and context that have changed.
Yes, someone may have “moved our cheese” – or our “mountain,” as the case may be – but we have an unchanging God who himself is on the move. He has come and is on the move for the sake of “all people” (Titus 2:11ff). Let us, as praying members and fellow workers of the World Mission Prayer League, with fervent prayer and great intentionality, follow his lead. This will pay off. Perhaps he’ll change us, too! And in his hands that can’t be a bad thing.