Sitting in the Manse, writing this article for ‘The Proclaimer’ I never thought, by this time of the year, we would still be living in the grim clutches of the Coronavirus. Looking back to the good old days 8 months ago, when we could sing in Church, go to a football match, dine out with all our friends, enjoy the hustle and bustle of shopping in the Sales, go on holiday without any stress and worries. Ah, those were the days my friends, we thought they’d never end.

In the last edition of the Proclaimer I asked if you ever find the time to be still and know God. Well we have had plenty of time, whether we liked it or not, forced upon us to be still, and I have heard wonderful stories and seen how our members have reached out to neighbours, not just those in need, but to all in a show of community fellowship.

Sadly I have also seen pain and suffering as too many of our members, our families and friends bear the challenges of social distancing and shielding.

We never thought this journey through 2020 would be easy, but why Lord, we ask, why does life have to be so hard?

I was recently reminded of the first time that God spoke to the Prophet Jeremiah, he said to him,

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart.” (Jeremiah 1:5)

If God did this for Jeremiah, did he not do it for us all – are we not all made in his image – set apart – but for what?

Was it easy for Jeremiah (or any other prophet or disciple) who like many named servants of the Lord in the Bible retreated from God’s calling, claiming he was not worthy? But God did not give up on Jeremiah and assured him that he would be with him

Why do we think that life should be easy for us?

The leader of the disciples, Peter, was just like us, he had lots of faults – but Peter walked on water when the Lord commanded him to step out of the boat. But as he walked out onto the surface of the sea he began to doubt his faith and he sank into the waves.

God knows we will all fail at times, make mistakes, go down the wrong paths, and face challenges that seem insurmountable. But through all our times of trial, our faith gives us the knowledge that God is with us and through his strength we can overcome or learn to live with life’s challenges because God is outside of time as we know it, and God saw our challenges before we were born and set us apart for them.

God allows us to walk on water, even if we sink later.

Yours in Christ

Les Brunger (Minister)