A recent article in the New York Times assured us that the Philippines was returning to normalcy because the children were playing again in the streets after Typhoon Halyan. Children playing spoke dramatically about the great strength of the Filipino people and reminded the world that life within and among Filipinos had not been irrevocably broken, that the Filipino spirit was bigger than any storm and that the Filipinos would rise again to plant crops, erect buildings and laugh together in the face of impossible odds.
For Christians, this truth is at the heart of Jesus' preaching. No matter what happens to us, no matter how many natural disasters batter us or how much suffering we endure, God's promise of life for ever in and through Jesus can never disappear or be taken away. God's love and his Living Word Jesus Christ will never pass away. Remembering this simple truth changes everything. Knowing the Lord is near, within, around and for us strengthens us through every trial and reminds us to be Christ's presence for all those who think of themselves as foundering or lost.
In the 8th chapter the letter to the Romans St Paul says it plainly and powerfully. Listen to him and rejoice.
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (37-39)Today, ask God for the faith that leads to hope and the memory of God's promise to love and be with us always.
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