Still Floundering

So here we are, floundering in the icy depths. Frozen in apprehension, indecision, fear for the future, sorrow, guilt, whatever. I’ve never, thankfully, plunged through the ice and into the water beneath but I would imagine that the first instinct is to pull out onto the icy edges still intact, hoping it is thicker and stronger there.

The thing is, though, that the only secure footing is getting to the land bordering the loch. We don’t want to return to the precariousness of walking on ice. We want to plant our feet firmly on solid ground.

As we take tentative steps towards unlocking life during this pandemic of Covid-19, which is still raging all around, we don’t want to find ourselves plunging back into the icy waters. These steps need to be prayerfully taken. I may not have much influence on Boris or Nicola or Donald Trump, but I can determine my own return to a more social life, and can do that prayerfully.

As society starts to rebuild and recover, we don’t want to rebuild on sheet ice, but on solid ground. We want to put down foundations of justice and mercy and equality, re-imagining society so that all members can enjoy life free of the fear of violence and brutality. We want to put down foundations that secure environmental integrity, and that should involve less commuting, less consuming, less attention to inconsequential.

We want to rebuild on the rock of Jesus. The prayers of God’s people are powerful to effect change. With confidence in his faithfulness, I pray today that we will come out of our plunge into the icy waters with a deeper awareness of God’s love for his creation and his creatures, with a deeper love for him who so loves us, and with a deeper love for his creation and our fellow women and men.