Putting up with lockdown conditions is proving to be a trial on many fronts. There seem to be more grumpy people around than last time, or is that just me? Many prefer to grizzle in the vain hope that it might hurry things up so we can go back to “normal” as soon as possible. Fat chance; Delta doesn’t sleep.

We tend not to think that trials may be a normal part of our faith experience. We would prefer to follow a Gospel of ease, where nothing much is expected from us, so nothing can be taken away. We could be missing “the crown of life” (above). What we settle for is not the “life” imagined by James, but something rather flaccid and harmless. So harmless that we are no threat to anyone, Satan included.

“Standing the test” suggests that our trials will be for a season only, designed to bring the believer to a higher level of trust and faith. The stories of our early missionaries to the dark places on earth are both horrific and thrilling. The early martyrs knew what they were getting themselves into, and still they volunteered for the sake of the Gospel. The desire to share the Good news was stronger than the opposition they encountered, bitter though it was. Does their example inspire us to put up with our rather small trials under lockdown?
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Some might argue that the world would be a more peaceful place if there were no religions to divide us, and that is true. But “peace” is a fickle reality if viewed from a Godless perspective. It exists only where there is a balance of power between opposing factions, and is brittle at best. But the peace that comes from knowing God’s love crosses every divide. Enemies can become friends overnight when both recognise who they owe their lives to. The “crown of life” (above) is something bestowed as a reward for perseverance. How much more could we be persuaded to work for the Lord if we understood this better? How might our grumpiness improve?

Whatever happens in this time of lockdown, it is important to hold onto the things that matter. This period of inactivity need not apply to our minds; having time and space on our hands is not to be squandered. Cleaning out the kitchen cupboards is one good use of our time, but cleaning out our mind-sets is another. The various tests that that we have all been under in our segregated “bubbles” will have brought to the surface both the good and the bad in us. What clowns we are, if we let the opportunity go by to reset our compasses in the relative absence of distractions.

As our Communion liturgy says, “some sins are plain to us, some are hidden, and some we cannot face.” What are we to do, apart from confessing them, to safeguard ourselves from being constantly at their mercy? Is there some housekeeping that we can do to tidy up our act?

We could start by identifying those sins that keep reappearing, and taint our relationship with God. While we all know that He is slow to anger and quick to forgive (Psalm 110) do we also know that there are things that He expects us to do to keep the door shut, to both our sins and the demons that take advantage of the footholds that we give them?

I have found it helpful to identify the point at which any recurring sin is given my permission. What I find is not ignorance of what is right or wrong, but rather a justification that I have presented to myself for not doing the right thing. Therein lies my enemy. If you ever hear yourself say “but where’s the harm” or “I was provoked” or “everybody else is doing it” just know that your enemy the devil pricks up his ears.

Before confessing our sins next time, perhaps we could start by confessing our justifications.

Barry Struthers

When catastrophe strikes, such as the current Corona Virus Pandemic, it is easy to welcome the thought that maybe our liberator is at hand. Maybe today He will come and take us out of our earth-bound turmoil and gather us up with all the believers on earth, past and present, and remove us from this climate of woe. With so many uncertainties that lie ahead, there will be few who are not feeling the weight of anxiety as the fall-out from the lockdown proceeds. How appealing is the thought that we might skip the next page of history.

Whatever our circumstances prove to be in the coming weeks, one thing is certain. Our faith will be tested. Can God be relied upon to secure our earthly needs when our livelihoods have been brought to a crunching halt? Will earthly mechanisms have enough in storage for the whole world, all at once, and just how far can the combined human budget be spread?

This current crisis is set against a very different back-drop from those like it in the past. Whereas once we relied on the community to pool its resources, this may no longer be the case, as the plug has been well and truly pulled from the sink of human unity. In recent years, all the trends have been to isolate rather than to gather. People feel less need to make human contact now that everything can be organised and provided for on-line, and less concerned by how their actions impact others. We have discovered that we hardly have to leave our homes at all, and if it weren’t for the few strong friendships we have maintained, for the most part we could look no further than ourselves and the internet to survive.

Jesus popped a telling question about his return: “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on Earth?”(Luke 18:8).

Will we join those who disappoint him, or will we now especially, hold on to Him more firmly than ever? Never has our witness mattered more.

Barry Struthers