by Pastor Sharon Ortiz, Pastor of Education
When I was young and single, and life was much less complicated than it is now, it was easy to find time with God. I could wake up when I wanted, have my devotional time uninterrupted for as long as I chose to with my perfect playlist at the perfect volume in the background, journal to my heart’s content, and be alone whenever I needed to be. I remember many sweet days and nights in rich fellowship with the Lord.
There is one night, in particular, that will always be a special memory. I grew up five minutes away from the ocean, so being at the beach at any given hour was not unusual. One night, I was at the beach during a full moon. The moonlight was so bright that I could see my shadow clearly. I could have read a book in that moonlight, it was so radiant. As I walked along the sand that night, marveling at the moment, the ocean, God’s creation, my heart in wonder and awe of His glory and love, I saw my shadow moving over the ridges of the sand, and it almost looked like my shadow was dancing. It was as if God had orchestrated this beautiful moment just for me and was asking me to have a dance with Him in this magnificent ballroom. He wooed me.
Fast forward a decade or so, and now I am a wife and a mom, an introvert who is never alone. I desperately missed those luxurious moments alone with the Lord. Those early years of motherhood were overwhelming and so lonely (For all you extroverts, make no mistake–being alone and being lonely are two different things!). Everything was hard. I was so discouraged, certain that I was doing it all wrong. I remember thinking back to my old lifestyle nostalgically and lamenting, “God, I miss you.” Almost as soon as I thought it, I distinctly remember God saying to me, “I didn’t go anywhere.” God is unchanging. My circumstances had changed dramatically, but He was and is the same yesterday, today, and forever. I simply did not know how to experience Him beyond my own means and measures.
That was the beginning of a new season for me. I learned to seek Him and fellowship with Him in new ways. I learned that I could pray without ceasing while washing dishes. I learned new things about His fatherhood as I raised my own children. I learned to surrender my mind in the constant chaos of nothing being in my control. In everything that had changed in my life, I now saw an opportunity to know God newly.
All change is an opportunity to know God more, to know Him better. I am still naturally reluctant to change. I’m a creature of habit. But whether change is good or bad, I now approach it as an opportunity, an invitation from God, to see what He is doing in and through it. If I have never experienced something before, that also means I have never experienced God in that space before. That excites me. There is no end to knowing Him.
Perhaps you are facing unfamiliar territory today—be it a new job, a new role, a new house, a new stage of life. Transition is always hard, and change can be scary. But may you listen for the still, small voice that leads you by still waters and into green pastures. May you step out of the familiar into the adventure that He calls you to, and in which He goes before you. In the unknown, may you trust in His constancy. May you see change as ripe with opportunities to know Him newly.
Change is never the end. God is simply teaching you a new dance. I, for one, never want to stop dancing with the Lover of my soul. After all these years, He woos me still. He is as romantic as ever. And it is one heck of a ride.