What never changes? Three constants that will give you peace of mind

What never changes in the single life? Your romantic interest? Nope. Your job? Nope. Your finances? Nope. Your health? Nope.

Everything you can think of is subject to change, and that makes for a shaky sense of security. We single folks like security because we don't always have a safety net when something goes wrong.

But you do have an indestructible safety net, even if you can't see it. If you follow Jesus Christ, you have three certainties you can turn to no matter what's going on in the world around you.

What never changes? God

"I the LORD do not change." (Malachi 3:6a, NIV)

He said it himself. Perfection does not need to change. Nothing can be added to it or taken away from it to make it better. Perfection is the pinnacle, and only God is perfect.

You have to think about this for a while before the full comfort of it hits you. God is the same today as he was in Scripture 3,000 years ago. A million years from now he will still be the same.

God was reliable in the past, is reliable in the present and will be in the future. Every other attribute of his stays the same too.

What this means for you and me as single people is that the God who answers prayer will always answer prayer. He does not—he cannot—go back on his promises. He cannot be dishonest, vacillating, or vindictive. Unlike people, God never backs out because "something came up." He controls circumstances; circumstances never control him.

It's hugely reassuring that God never changes. He never grows senile or incompetent. You don't have to worry about him not being capable of fulfilling your request.

What never changes about God is his plan. A perfect being comes up with a perfect plan for humanity and nothing can throw it off-course, from Satan's meddling to our backsliding. Because God knows the future, nothing surprises him or catches him off guard. His omniscience, that all-encompassing knowledge only he possesses, never changes.

As followers of Christ, you and I can trust this unchanging God to make our stories come out right in the end. Our Savior is steadfast:

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." (Hebrews 13:8, NIV)

What never changes? God's Word

“All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” (1 Peter 1:24-25, NIV)

Christian singles need a code to live by. The Bible provides it. I love the fact that the Bible is a trustworthy handbook for how Christians should act. We should be different. We shouldn't conform to the world. We should expect ridicule and criticism when we follow Jesus. That simply shows we're on a God-pleasing path.

A perfect God could only create a perfect book, and that's what the Bible is. While Scripture was written by men, they were inspired by God. The nature of the collaboration is unclear, but what is certain is that the Bible never has to be updated or corrected; therefore, it never changes.

What was good advice for your grandmother remains good advice for you today. However, sometimes that advice is hard to adapt to your own situation. The Life Application Study Bible solves that. When I was in my 20s and 30s, stumbling along, it was my go-to Bible. It takes God's wisdom and explains how to apply it to your everyday problems. Thanks to this wonderful tool, nobody can give the excuse that the Bible is irrelevant today or that they can't understand it.

In addition to The Life Application Bible, I also recommend the Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible. Its 30 Life Principles will help you make decisions in keeping with God's will for your life. Both of these Bibles are down-to-earth and easy to understand. You'll be pleased with how helpful they are.

As society changes, the Bible's enduring truths are a dependable way to distinguish between right and wrong. Our culture can't be trusted to guide us on morals and behavior. Satan likes nothing better than for social influencers to condemn the Bible as old-fashioned and obsolete.

God will never become obsolete, nor will his principles for righteous living.

What never changes? God's love for you

Being single can be a lonely existence. Many days you wonder whether anybody cares.

The rock-solid truth is that God loves you passionately. If you are a believer in Jesus, you have been adopted into God's family as a daughter or son. When you think about it, that's a pretty overwhelming fact.

What never changes is the quality of God's love. It has always been intense and always will be, no matter what you do. When you fail, God loves you as much as before. When you doubt, God's love doesn't decrease.

We may feel that God is far away, but feelings are not facts. The Holy Spirit lives inside believers. How can you get any closer than that?
A perfect God has a perfect love for you so it never needs to change.

It doesn't need to get bigger or better. It's already tremendous, greater than any human love you could ever hope for. It's a God-sized love and a God-class love. It's simply the best!

The takeaway

For singles like you and me, what this all means is that our guiding force can be trusted without hesitation, no matter what's going on in the world or in our lives personally.

That's a big deal. A very big deal. When I was younger, I thought when God didn't answer my prayers the way I wanted, it meant he didn't love me. But as I matured, I understood that when God didn't answer my selfish, foolish requests, it meant he did love me. To give me exactly what I wanted, when I wanted it, would have been like a parent feeding a three year-old a steady diet of candy bars.

Friend, believe me when I tell you I threw plenty of tantrums trying to get my way. It took me decades to learn that God not only knows what's best for me better than I do, but that he loves me too much to turn me into a spoiled brat. The same holds true for you.

What never changes—God, his Word, his love for you—provides an unmovable rock you can hang onto throughout your life. Turn to these realities when the world goes crazy, as it's doing now.

Peace of mind is available when you're positive God's got your back. He never stops watching out for his followers until they're back home with him. And that's something you and I can bet our lives on.

How to draw closer to God

Our strength comes from God. When we try to live the Christian life on our own, we usually fail miserably. Only when we take our guidance from the Holy Spirit within can we achieve the victories we so desire.

That's what Hope for Hurting Singles is about, an unashamed handbook for happiness as a Christian single. Frankly, you won't find another book like it, because it's based on Jack Zavada's 50 years as an adult Christian single.

You won't want to repeat all the mistakes Jack made--that's why he included them. But you will want to learn from the wise choices he made.

Avoid the time-consuming, painful trial-and-error. Get happier faster!

Order your copy today, $10.99 in paperback and $3.99 for the Kindle version, at amazon.com.

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