Is Change Good

You have heard folks say "Time changes things". I have said many times "You can either take change by the hand or it will take you by the throat".

We get comfortable with the way things are. We get in a rut. It's like our feet are stuck in a Foosball table. Sometimes we can't even remember why we were on the Foosball table to start with.

Many things we can't change even if we wanted to, like the weather. Worrying about things we can't change is a waste of time. Our weekend rain is a welcome change and a huge blessing.

There are things we can change. Change is beneficial if it helps accomplish our purpose. We change the way we do things to make them more efficient and productive.

My friend Todd runs a tire shop. We talked about how times have changed. He said gov't regulations won't allow him to hire young kids that want to work. He said by the time the gov't says they are old enough they either don't know how or don't want to work anymore. Much of our countries manual labor is done by migrant help now. As a society our culture hasn't taught our children the value of work.

We have short memories. This spread sheet shows how high corn and soybean markets got over each of the last 15 years. So are the inflationary prices we've been blessed with over the last 3 to 5 years here to stay or are we reliving the demand years of the 1970's and will have to deal with the oversupply years later like the 1980's after inputs and expenses have skyrocketed? 

In 1973 I bought my first tractor for $10000. At 17 yrs old I borrowed $26000 from FHA for the machinery I needed to farm. Today gov't regulations would require me to be 18 yrs old before I could even work in my friends tire shop.

In 1981 I bought a tractor with only 90 hrs. on it. It cost four times what my first tractor cost just eight years before. I had to finance it over five years. My interest rate was 18 percent. 

Today tractors cost about 25 times what my first tractor cost. A medium sized farmers full line of machinery's cost is now in the millions.

Four years ago our president promised change if he were elected. Today our country is racing down a slippery slope as we struggle between capitalism and progressive socialism. Ronald Reagan once said there were only two places that socialism would work, "In heaven where they don't need it, and in hell where they already have it."

So as change happens and life gets faster and unpredictable it's good to have things that are concrete, steady, and affirming to hang on to like faith, family, and friends. 

It's encouraging when you believe there is a Higher power in charge. It's also comforting to know that we have a direct line of communication to that Higher power through prayer when we need help handling the changes around us.