Dear Friends,

We live in uncertain times as everyone is struggling to come to terms with this Covid-19 or Corona virus. We can’t see it, we are unsure as to how it might affect us should we be unlucky enough to catch it, we are told that things will get worse as the pandemic develops and we see other countries taking drastic measures to try to limit the damage it may do to people and communities. It is not surprising that people are worried or fearful as we each try to work out what it may mean for our own personal situations.

In the midst of these uncertainties we do well to reflect on the unchanging nature of our faith in God. As we are in the season of Lent and Easter we learn to see Jesus Christ once again as the human face of our eternal God, the One who lived on earth, who taught us so much about God’s love for all of humankind, who died on the cross carrying the burden of our sins for us, and who rose again, triumphant over death and evil. God is often described as the Rock, the solid, unmoveable ground to which we can cling whatever is going on in the world about us. In uncertain times we should give thanks for that unchanging Rock which gives us stability in difficult times.

For centuries people of the world have had to endure disasters, calamities, wars and terrors be they natural or man-made. It is at times like these that people often turn to religion for help as they realise that they can no longer control their own destiny. As Christians we firmly believe in God’s love for us and we trust that whatever the outcome of our difficult situations, Jesus Christ will be there alongside and supporting us. We remember too the second great commandment: to love one’s neighbour as oneself. In these uncertain times we need to be demonstrating Christ’s love to friends and neighbours as we do what we can to help those in need around us.

With so many of our normal activities and events being cancelled or postponed we are going to have to fall back on our own initiatives for entertainment and – just maybe – to do some of those jobs which have been at the bottom of the priority list for a long time!

As our sphere of activity becomes more restricted we will need to focus on our local communities and to do whatever we can to support our near neighbours and close friends. The same attitude of support also applies to our Church communities of course. I hope that if anyone is unable or unwilling to attend Church in person they will feel free to contact other Church friends by telephone, whether it be for a specific request for help or just a friendly  chat. We are going to find that things change a lot from our normal routine in the next few weeks and now is the time to find new ways of supporting each other as we share Christ’s love within our communities.

Lord God, thank you for being our Rock in uncertain times.

Bob Alger