This is the 10th of a series of 15 devotionals from the late 80s when my oldest sons were just little boys …

I am completely backed against the wall for time as I sit and write. In fact, I told Karen Smith (church secretary) that I was going to just write something quick rather than the usual thing about my boys. But then Karen reminded me that this is probably my last shot a “3” sons article.

Someone asked what I would name the article after the baby came, and I said, “Life with My Four Sons.” Yes, my faith is gone, although you may continue to pray pink! Liz Stott had a good idea in the event of a girl. She said I could call the column “Life with My Three Brothers” and write it from the perspective of Bethany (that’s the baby’s name – boy or girl!).

My sister in Baltimore is having the boys visit her for some vacation time this summer. Aaron was crying the other night and said, “What if my brothers go away and grow up before the baby comes and then I won’t have anybody to play with!”

Once again, our lives are going to change. We’ve been out of diapers for a long time!

But change is inevitable. In fact, it is the way it should be. We are constantly to be changing, to be becoming more like Christ.

Change can be painful. We like to hang on to what we are comfortable with and know. It takes faith to step out into what is new and different.

I thank all of you who have stuck with us in these days of inevitable change at First Baptist. All we have is the future; the past is already gone. But we have Christ to guide us, so the future in that light is not nearly so fearful. He is our goal, and yet at the same time is our strength – we cannot fail.

(The reference to change at the church was because the long-term senior pastor had recently departed to take on a missions agency leadership position. I would later become the senior pastor for four more years before moving to Maryland, but that was not entirely anticipated at the time of this writing. And here we are in Maryland with a pastoral change of sorts – Chris getting married tomorrow. But churches are bigger and more lasting than the cast of characters who pastor them and come and go.)