Lesson of a New Stove

I picked up a new stove on Monday. We do not go in for fancy. So, the new one is a lot like the old one. It is the same color, uses the same type of heating element; the control knobs are in the same places. The new stove is, in every way it could be, just like the old one. But the heating elements are located differently. They are the same size and type as the old elements, but the large are where the small were and the small where the large were.

One might not think that a little change like that would matter, but it does. When the ingredients for breakfast are set on the counter, it turns out that they are in the wrong place. The oatmeal is where the sweet potato needs to be; and the sweet potato is where the teapot ought to be. It is amazing how the placement of the heating elements changes everything. We will get used to the new arrangement eventually, but we might as well learn the lesson the stove is teaching us.

Change is rarely as easy and straightforward as we expect it to be. If we were learning to use a stove with all the latest technologies, we would expect a “learning curve.” But the truth is, even when one sticks to the simplest model available, there will be unexpected complications. Let us remember that and try to be patient.

Let’s remember that and try to be patience when the church makes changes to its programs. Some people believe it should be simple to make changes in a church, but often small changes have unexpected consequences. It takes time to work out the details. Be patient.

Let’s remember that in our attitude toward others. Some people are struggling with uncomfortable changes in their lives. Perhaps an old familiar voice is absent, or a new voice is making itself heard at all hours of the night. Such changes upset the pattern of our lives and may lead us to be less able to cope with other things. Change is a necessary part of life, but it is never as simple as we think it should be. Let us be kind and considerate of one another.

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Eph 4:1-3, ESV).