Change and Permanence – Sunday, March 16, 1986
Life is a rhythm of change and permanence. First, change because we measure everything in mortal minutes, and time is constantly changing. Everything about us seems to be in a state of fluctuation.
And then there is permanence. While much is always changing, we value that which doesn’t. Constancy gives us security. We look for it in relationships, in philosophies, in the traditions which bind the past to the future.
Change and permanence. We are made to need and appreciate both, and the earth reflects our needs. The waves, changing and unchanging. The seasons, earth yielding to cold and then to warm change within a constant cycle, refreshment to our souls.
But, as in anything of value, too much can be harmful. To exaggerate the pleasures of change and or permanence in our lives can do us harm. Too much change gives us an appetite for novelty, a need for something in our lives which is never fully satisfied. Their very nature of the pursuit guarantees diminishing returns and can bring such tragedies as infidelity in marriage, inconstancy in friendship, or ineffectiveness in completing daily responsibilities.
Those who become addicted to the novelty of change become slaves to the whims of the world. C.S. Lewis said, “(The Lord) wants men to ask very simple questions: Is it righteous? Is it prudent? Is it possible? (But, if men ask), ‘Is it in accordance with the general movement of our time or is this the way that history is going?,’ then they will neglect the relevant questions.”1
On the other hand, those who become too attached to permanence can stagnate, dig deep grooves for themselves beyond which they cannot see.
Individually, these are they who take a rigid position and cannot move from it, who are afraid to try new things, who cannot nor dare not risk or try. These are they who considered their progression sufficient years ago have remained petrified in place ever since.
Organizations which dwell on permanence are those which say, “This is the way we’ve always done it” or “if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it,” not realizing the thing that broke was their ability to change. They fear innovation, quash new ideas, penalize risk takers.
Such intransigence, either in companies or individual lives, results in regression, not progression.
Change and permanence are two of life’s great pleasures and opportunities, but we must always strive to keep them in proper balance.
1 Lewis, C.S., The Screwtape Letters, Lord and King Associates, Inc. pg. 119
March 16, 1986
Broadcast Number 2,952