Every attribute of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is an amazing one. His love, His sacrifice, His ability to teach….yet there’s one especially that amazes me, and that is that He is “the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb. 13:8).

We live in a world that is changing by the second. One day, this politician over here will be ‘for’ something, then the next day turn and vote against it. One day, our government will pass a law protecting God’s institution of marriage, and the next they will shoot that law down and call it unconstitutional. Through it all, our Jesus is the same. He ever lives to be an advocate for you and me (1 John 2:1). He has forever and will forever be deity, and His blood will forever cleanse us from our iniquities. He has always been and will always be perfect, and He has always and will always love us in a way we could never deserve. Truly, He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and how grateful are we that we don’t have fickle Savior?!

And yet, I’m not that way, and I’m also thankful for that. I’m not the same Emily as I was in my yesterdays, and I pray that my tomorrows will be even better. You see, my todays are often haunted by the sins and missteps of my yesterdays, and hopefully–prayerfully–my future will be closer to God than my todays.

So I am thankful: thankful that my Savior has always and will always forgive me; that I never have to wonder if He’ll be willing to forgive this time. I’m thankful that my Savior has always and will always go before God on my behalf, pleading the case for my sinful, weak self. I’m thankful that my Savior has always and will always want me to be with Him in heaven, even though I will never be perfect.

But I’m also thankful that I can change. I’m thankful that I’m not tied to the sins that yesterday Emily committed; that while people may always remember who I used to be, my God has wiped the slate clean. I’m thankful that the Emily I am today receives grace, because she’s far from perfect. And I’m especially thankful that future Emily is promised a home in heaven with the Father, who has always and will always love her and want her to be there.

Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever, and aren’t we thankful for that. You, however, don’t have the be the same person forever. “Today is a gift, that is why it is called the present.” Make good use of the gift and turn the today you into the person future you hopes to be.