Consistency. We crave it, expect it and demand it. We don’t realize how often we expect things and people around us to be consistent, but by our words and actions we do.

We expect the weatherman to be right. Living in the mountains, he is often fairly accurate, but flexibility is necessary. We expect it in our heating and air conditioning. We want the inside of our homes to be one temperature when we are awake and we allow it to drop a bit while sleeping, but with digital thermostats, we expect to have the temp within one degree. I’ve even heard many people declare their expectation of 68 degrees in the summer and 72 degrees in the winter! It never made sense to me, but people have that expectation of consistency and desire.

We expect our children to do what we say. We’re willing to impose discipline when necessary, but there is a limit of our patience. We expect politicians to look out for the interests of their constituents! That used to be true back in John Adams’ day and there still are some who seek to represent well. We also expect loved ones to say and do the right thing all the time.

The problem is there is no one and no thing that is perfectly consistent. Only God is perfectly consistent. The Lord said through Malachi, “For I am the LORD, I do not change.” (Mal. 3:6 NKJ) We also read about the Lord Jesus, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Heb 13:8 NKJ) That is not just a cute verse. Jesus Christ is the same in personality, temperament and emotional well-being always. The theological word is “immutable” or unchanging. He is God!

Since we moved into our dwelling and are now using a wood stove, the temperature is going to fluctuate, especially in this milder weather. If I keep the fire going, the living room stays about 78 degrees. So I get a good fire going at night and then let it burn down over night and it keeps the dwelling above 65 degrees for the rest of the day. Then I repeat the process when the temps dip. I’m not sure what I’ll do when the temperature is consistently sub-freezing, but I imagine those days will be continuous reminders that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only consistent One in the universe.

So when things don’t go the way you’d expect, remember that one day in heaven everything will be consistent. In the mean time, everything around you will change. You can either plan, work, spend and invest to keep everything consistent, or you can keep looking to the One who is consistent and trust in His sovereign grace.