Is Change for the Sake of Change Ever a Good Thing? Maybe.

Change is something that no one can control. Change can be a wonderful blessing or it can cause havoc. The one thing that never changes is change itself. Change must occur or things die. One of the miracles of nature is the human body. According to scienceline.ucsb.edu “about 300 million cells die every minute in our bodies.” This sounds like a lot but consider we have about 10-50 trillion cells. The Washington Post has reported that approximately 10,000 people retire from their jobs every day and the Wall Street Journal reports 280,000 jobs added in November 2017. The point is that change is occurring everywhere and continuously. But we should ask if change just for the sake of change is good for the organism or organization.
During the last several months I have had individuals, couples, and groups come to me asking what they can do to adjust and cope with changes going on in their life. The loss of a loved one, a new career path, reorganization at work or school, are just a few examples of unexpected change. Is there one answer that solves these issues or shows a path to avoid the pain and panic that is created by change? The answer, of course, is “No”. Each issue, each change, and each person involved is different. Sometimes a change is necessary to correct a situation and sometimes people new to a situation wants to introduce change just to show authority. I recently was told about a situation where some new people were appointed to a position of authority and immediately decided they had to correct a situation involving a group of people that has caused no trouble and negative issues for over three years, this group has been acclaimed as being a very beneficial and being a needed program. Somehow in their wisdom and true lack of knowledge concerning the program they saw a potential for harm to the organization. This potential harm imagined or real involves human nature which cannot be controlled regardless of the human effort. Nevertheless, these individuals are willing to harm a known group to protect an imagined group from an imagined risk that may or may never occur. Even after this error in judgment has been identified and shown to the new persons of authority they persist in going forward to do the harm because they cannot admit their position is wrong or incredibly weak. In a separate organization, I have been watching multiple changes and reorganization occurring that has caused much concern and debate. This organization took over a large business and has spent many hours and many dollars evaluating multiple programs, income sources, necessary and unnecessary expenses, management styles, and almost every aspect of the business. Recently this organization start implementing new management, innovative programs, abolishing some programs, and attempting to modernize the overall business model. This organization is experiencing some resistance and negative reaction from some of the employees but others are excepting the changes as going in a new and better direction. People have left the organization but the organization as not suffered because of the changes.
From the two examples given, you can see one involves egos and attitudes and the other involves research and careful evaluation of circumstances. It is easy to see which set of circumstance will have the best chance to succeed. Anytime you are faced with causing change, take time to research the situation, know what will be involved, evaluate the damage that will be caused and measure the benefit, and always consider if the change is truly necessary or is it a result of ego and a need to appear important. 1 Thessalonians 5:22 reminds us, “but test everything: hold fast what is good.” This is a pretty good test to ensure going forward with change. If you are involved as part of a change, not of your making, be sure to react slowly, know what is changing and why, be cautious to not overreact, give change a chance to present itself in its entirety, and with reservation accept what you cannot influence. If after proper time, consideration, and understanding you cannot accept the change then you can make an informed decision on what your best action should be. Philippians 4:6-7 states, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus.”