… among God’s people in God’s world; in the hearts of those who, like me, claim to follow Jesus and too often get it wrong.
The news could make one rather depressed if one identified with…
- the holder of a valid visa refused entry because of a Presidential Executive Order which may have been unconstitutional and unlawful.
- someone living in N. Ireland hoping the Executive might have led the country prudently and selflessly rather than selfishly slithering into yet another potentially tribal election.
- a disoriented refugee family facing rejection and suspicion because they are different from “us”.
In the early hours of Sunday 24 July 2016, someone started several fires inside Saintfield Road Presbyterian Church in Belfast. On Sunday 5 February 2017 – 30 Sundays later – we worshipped God again in our own buildings. Not in the church itself, but in the church hall.
It was a time for rejoicing at having got this far; for thanking local churches and the local primary school for the use of their premises; for continuing a preaching series on prayer; for praying for wisdom in planning the church restoration – but most of all for thanking God and acknowledging that he is in control.
So how is this story about my church’s problems connected with where I started above?
Well, because a friend led the prayer of intercession which included these words which touched me:
We are sorry that we are so obviously sinful. We recognise that we are selfish if our well-being is threatened. We see intolerance within us when we hear and see what is unfamiliar and we lack a generosity of spirit and an attitude of hospitality and acceptance.
But Father God, we see that you are good and pure and with you there is full acceptance and generosity and safety.
And my friend’s prayer is so relevant to a story I plan to post in the next few days.
It is based on some news from a Wycliffe Bible Translators UK & Ireland colleague living and working in a West African country where she is so obviously “different”.
John 20:21 