Hello all. I hope that you are ok. We are fine, if a little worn down by living behind scaffolding with all the noise and the disruption that it brings. At my lowest ebb, I sometimes think about the person in authority who signed off the cladding as being safe and wonder why there is no sign of them being in jail anytime soon.
Speaking of people who should be in jail, wandering around the seafront this morning (no church - long, boring story), I took some time to stand by the war memorial and say thank you to those who made the ultimate sacrifice and to pray that their families knew that this was how normal people felt. Sometimes the crassness takes your breath away.
Because we are living on a building site, I had a look at the book of Nehemiah this week. For those not in the know, Nehemiah tells the story of the ruined walls of Jerusalem and what happened when God told him to rebuild the walls. Now you might think that, because God had told him to build the wall, all would be smooth sailing and trouble-free. That would be an incorrect thought. Nehemiah had to deal with attempts on his life, a shortage of building materials, and people attacking the builders so often that all the building team had to carry a spade in one hand and a sword in the other. There was also a massive administration mess-up, which meant that everyone was starving to death, so Nehemiah had to sort that out as well. Can I just say, apropos of nothing, that administration is one of the most underrated jobs in the church, and God usually gives it to the best people in the church - Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you (a) Stephen and (b) Thomas Beckett and (c) me. (One of these people is not like the other ones, you may have noticed). It was really tough, but did they lose heart? Absolutely, they did.
The builders are pooped,
the rubbish piles up;
We’re in over our heads,
We can’t build this wall.
However, they continued to work as teams, including Shallum, son of Hallohesh, mayor of the other half-district of Jerusalem, along with his daughters. (I love it when sturdy girls really get things moving). Nehemiah stationed guards at the most vulnerable places of the wall. And I'm thinking that's probably the key when I'm struggling. Put extra protection up against the weakest bits. Not being hard on yourself for struggling is important. I know what my weaknesses are (it's a long list) and sometimes it's as simple as not getting too exhausted, eating fairly decently, that kind of thing. And Nehemiah, on a more positive note, told them to keep their minds on the Master. Remember who you are and who he is
God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! Ephe 3
In the words of the great Han Solo - I can imagine quite a lot, but God says he can do even more.
Ultimately, the wall builders were successful. (I hope that's not a spoiler - it was 4000 years ago, but I have seen people getting worked up about finding out the result of The Traitors and that has been all over the Internet for three days.) It wasn't without trial, though - that's not promised, but support and an intervention are. I'm speaking to myself as much as you lot, but I thought it might be helpful.
Two things before I go. Can I just recommend this book? A woman tells her life story through writing letters. I have seen people raving about it everywhere, so I gave in and bought it. I had just ploughed through a GK Chesterton book that I couldn't make head nor tail of (Not the Father Brown books), so I needed a break. And, annoyingly, I found it as good as everyone said. Both heartbreaking and uplifting. Out in paperback in April, apparently, if you don't want to shell out for a hardback.
Also, it would have been Aged Parent's birthday today. She was on unrepentant record as not really liking fun, but she liked her birthday, especially if it was accompanied by a nice Guinness. and a beef and silverskin pickled onion sandwich, and I think that we can all relate to that.
Have a good week.
Comments
Post a Comment