By Donna Myre

The twelve small white Dreamsicle angels seemed to sadly smile as I carefully wrapped each one in tissue and placed them in a plastic container. They, along with the cute red shelf upon which they had sat, were being packed away. New brightly-colored teenage bedroom decor was taking over the little-girl room that had been home to the angels for many years. This packing-away project was helping to mark the end of the childhood era in my oldest granddaughter’s life.

I have nothing against bright colors; actually, they are my favorite. In fact, I helped my granddaughter choose quite a lot of the new room decor. So it wasn’t that I did not like what was replacing the old—I was just somewhat saddened by the fact that the little girl was growing up. As I continued wrapping the collection, I relived the fun she and I had finding the miniature angels in various stores in many different cities. We would get so excited with each new purchase. Finally, one day the set was complete and for years now the angels had rested peacefully upon the red shelf in her bedroom.

As a tear sneaked out of my eye and made its way down my cheek, I asked myself, “Would I want her to remain a child forever?” Of course I would not. Something would be terribly
wrong if she did not grow and mature daily.

Growth and change are facts of life. Kittens grow into cats, puppies grow into dogs, colts grow into horses, and little girls grow into young ladies. We expect this process to transpire, and realize something isn’t right when change fails to occur. Life is all about change. Recently this quote by Kathleen Forbes struck a chord in my mind: “Disconnecting from change does not recapture the past. It loses the future:’

Just as we expect daily physical growth, I believe God expects daily spiritual growth. Christians are to grow in grace and in knowledge. As many as are led by the Spirit, they are the children of God. By His spirit we are changed into His image. Someday soon, we will suddenly experience our final growth change. In one split second the rapture of the church will take place. Our mortal bodies will be changed to immortal ones. The result of growing is great!