The Only Thing That's Constant

It seemed backwards, yet right at the same time. And that’s what makes it wise.

At the beginning of the pandemic, I was in the middle of editing this season’s episodes.

It’d been a definite learning curve – learning not to spend 15 minutes obsessing over a half second extra in a pause. How to repair choppy cuts. And listen closely to people’s breathing, to not cut them off mid-breath.

But even though it was tedious work, it was also comforting.

I was spending my days listening to conversations about faith and hope. Hearing voices of people I knew and cared about. And whose wisdom I valued deeply.

And it was letting me hear these conversations in a new light. Noticing things I hadn’t caught when doing the interviews live.

One of the most profound was in this week’s episode with Rachel Hearn.

Rachel was one of my first interviews. Just as I was finding my legs as a host.

I’d also just moved – to a new house and city – so we recorded our conversation on the floor of my spare room, surrounded by piles of unpacked boxes. I was holding a lot in my head as I asked her questions and listened to her responses.

So when I listened again while editing, it was like hearing the interview for the first time.

So many pieces of wisdom kept hitting me, feeling like the exact thing I needed to hear in the moment. And it felt all the more profound coming from the youngest millennial this season.

But the one that struck me the most was this: Because change is always constant, ...that’s what we can seek comfort in.

It seemed backwards, yet right at the same time. And that’s what makes it wise.

Change is hard for many of us.

There’s a reason we prefer “the devil we know, over the devil we don’t.”

It let’s us feel like life plays out predictably. That we’ve the ability to control outcomes.

Because change is unknown. It comes with risk. It’s harder than staying in old patterns, even if they’re not working anymore.

So we dig our heels in. Make a hundred excuses as to why it’s easier or better not to change.

But there’s also this well-known saying – “Humans make plans, God laughs.”

And you don’t need to believe in a deity to get the wisdom.

It’s about the process of change.

Change is a force that works without our input. It’s happening all the time. Making plants grow, moving the seasons and keeping the world turning. All on it’s own agenda.

We can’t control when change happens. When society shifts. It keeps moving forward whether we’re ready for it or not.

It’s daunting and feels vulnerable.

But in that moment a few months ago when I heard Rachel’s words, I found comfort in it.

Because we’re in a moment of big, transformational change.

A piece of RNA in a virus mutated – changed – and suddenly we were in a global pandemic. Things we took for granted as simple and everyday became impossible overnight.

Change happened more rapidly and on a bigger scale than most of us have ever experienced.

It was hard. And scary. And it made us feel vulnerable.

But that’s what makes Rachel’s words so wise.

Change is what caused the pandemic. And change is going to get us out of it.

Something will change – how the world functions, how we live day-to-day, what we know about the virus – and the pandemic will change too.

Nothing lasts forever. Not even this.

Things will change – we may not be able to predict how or when.

But if it’s the only constant, maybe putting faith in change is how we’ll find our way through.

-Mairin

What’s your experience of change? Do you resist it? Are you open to it?

Share your experience with us – it might end up on this blog or our social media!

Here’s how – write 500 words or less in a doc (Word or Pages) or make a 1min voice recording on your phone of your thoughts on this post. Then email it to us at: hello@keepingfaithpod.com.

We’d love to hear your personal perspective on how you’re working through these big questions. Don’t forget to tell us your name and where you’re from!

(If you want to stay anonymous, that’s ok too. Just let us know.)