‘He shall judge between many peoples, and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away’ Micah 4 v 3

How are your worry levels this December? As you read this you may well have just been to the polling stations whilst navigating the rather stormy/cold/unpredictable weather we’ve had recently. It seems that there is a lot going on for us in our nation at the moment and the drama levels have been so intense. It’s been a roller-coaster ride and Christmas hasn’t even arrived yet!

Every day it seems there are more statistics to understand, policies to digest and campaign slogans to evaluate. I guess like me your head might be spinning whilst all the time the media feasts on the spectacle. I was tickled by one tweet offering this attractive option - ‘shall we try unplugging, waiting 10 seconds and plugging back in again’!

Joking aside, all this has had a serious effect on our national psyche. We are aware of the way other nations are perceiving things and it has not been particularly positive for us. The atmosphere has begun to seep corrosively into our personal thoughts and relationships. So, what’s to do? Being told ‘Don’t panic’ is easy advice but certainly not an easy thing to achieve. Perhaps at times like these that we look beyond our confused, struggling leaders to the ancient and wise ‘sages’ who spoke words to transcend time and space. 

At the Remembrance service last month, our reading came from one of these ‘sages’ by the prophet Micah. He was a man who stood calm in the face of many storms and brought a comforting message of peace and truth to his hearers. He spoke of a time when the anxiety of war would end and the world would be made perfect again. God gave him those words to say and he was utterly convicted of the truth. 

You may say, well good for him, but how can we now have that ‘anxiety busting’ confidence in the context of a confusing election in 2019? The simple answer is we can. God still speaks to us through who Jesus was, and what he came to do. His death on the cross and resurrection means we can now live in the bigger picture of God's Kingdom. A Kingdom which is far larger than any political or geographical nation on earth that has ever, and will ever exist. (a wry nod to Egypt, Rome and Space-X’s Mars!?) A Kingdom whose foundation is Jesus himself. Understanding the truth of His promises gives hope and changes the atmosphere. All of a sudden thanksgiving replaces anxiety and we find able to reconcile our own brokenness to healthy relationship with others and God once again.

‘Don’t worry about anything, instead pray about everything. Then you will experience Gods peace’ Philippians 4 v 6-7

From myself and all at St Marks, Bilton have a very happy and peaceful Christmas. 

Rev. Jonathan