Thirty Eight Days of Being Closed - God is so Good

Well we woke up this morning to find that President Trump had come up with the great idea that we could inject people with disinfectant to kill the coronavirus. The fact that it would also kill the people had not occurred to him. No one had thought that they needed to explain that. The South African President had a moment with his face mask that prompted widespread delight. He was able to laugh it off saying he was going to start a mask application TV programme and glad that he had brought a smile to so many. What a good thing that we have each other to help us get through this.

Each day we wait to hear what the 24 hour death toll has been; hoping that it will have really fallen and the end of this crisis is truly coming closer. That no more lives will be lost. It's so odd that by being separated we are achieving something together.

The sun keeps shining and this spring has been the best that I can remember clasped within the very worst of circumstances. There have been phenomenal amounts of blossom on the cherry trees - or have I just had time to notice that.

People are now actively asking what is God doing through all of this. For God is in it. He's there in the courage of those who take on exhausting shifts in the NHS on which they risk not only their own lives but also those of the people they might take the virus back to when they finish. God's in the care in the community which supply the goods at the food banks and the support systems which keep bubbling up. He's there in reminding us that a ninety-nine year old army captain can raise just as much money for charity as a night of TV personalities strutting their stuff with enormous creative resources behind them.

For the church, people are starting to see that this is as a chance to think really deeply about who we are and what we are trying to achieve. In just a month we have worked out how to do services in completely new ways that are connecting with a whole lot of people we've never encountered before. We've space to decide where we truly want to travel after this. There's a prayer that we will come out of this rested, refreshed and ready to rise again. Psalm 46 is written for a time like this. God is good. Be still and know that I am God. Find your identity in being my child. Let's hope we listen and hear this message amongst all the noise.