‘Because you have made the Lord your refuge, the Most High your dwelling place, no evil shall befall you.' (Psalm 91.9-10a)  In a world where this is so obviously not true, it is good to be reminded that Jesus also struggled to make sense of promises like these and their conflict with what was required of him.

This week's news 

Our real security does not lie in thinking that God will protect us from all harm but in knowing that the love of Jesus will surround us and enable us to endure whatever befalls us. 

With calls for a new inquest into the Hillsborough tragedy, the growing horror over the stories of the abuse that Jimmy Savile was allowed to get away with, in common with many other abusers, it is clear, that whatever the psalmist says, we do not live in a world where God protects the innocent, or anyone else for that matter. We live in a world where children are driven to suicide because of the bullying and abuse they receive from other children, where some men routinely abuse their partners and where most communities react to those who are different with disrespect and hatred. The psalmist’s words are comforting so long as we keep them and all that we know about the real state of our nation and the wider world in separate compartments in our heads. But they offer hope of something deeper than a Father Christmas; the God who enables us to endure even when our tent is swamped with evil or distress.

Reflection

Words from this very psalm were part of Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. They were very familiar to him and we can assume they were part of what he wrestled with as he discerned God’s way throughout his ministry. 

Today’s reading from Hebrews tells us that Jesus learned through what he suffered and part of that learning would be making sense of the difference between the safety and security promised by Psalm 91 and the experience of suffering that prophets and faithful Jewish people had endured before, a road which Jesus himself was to travel.

God does not take us out of the world and its troubles but promises to be alongside us come what may, as Paul triumphantly proclaims in Romans 8.35. ‘Who will separate from the love of Christ? Will hardship or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril or sword? …… No in all all these things we are more than conquerors though him who loved us.’ Nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus who has walked the way of the cross and who calls us to follow him and be prepared to be baptised with the baptism of obedience and suffering with which he has been baptised.

God call us to be real; to have our eyes open to the reality of suffering and evil in our world and to have the courage still to trust in his goodness, mercy and faithfulness.

Prayer

This prayer could be used to conclude a time of silence in which the congregation is asked to let God into the whole of their situations and to ask his help to develop a trust that is capable of enduring through thick and thin.

Loving God, I am frightened about what really trusting you might mean.
So often, I want to close my eyes to the suffering I see around me
or to pray myself and those I love into an enclave free from pain and fear.
I do not understand why you, the source of all goodness and love,
the Creator and Sustainer of all that is,
allow such evil and distress
but I rejoice in the testimony of all those
who have found you their light and hope in their darkest times.
Grant me the courage to follow in the footsteps of Jesus
and to learn as he did to abide in you,
come what may.
Help me to live as someone
who believes in your eternal love and faithfulness.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.

Questions for discussion and for youth groups

Here is a reflection on walking the way of the cross from Grace Episcopal Church in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Use it to start a Bible study or youth group and pick up on these questions:

• The writer says that she doesn’t think the culture in the US can see the way of the Cross as the way of life and peace, do you think that is true of us here in Britain?
• What might it mean in your life to walk the way of the cross and how might that be light and peace?
• Share any experiences of God sustaining you through difficult times.

Action for adults and young people

Often part of how God sustains us in times of difficulty or suffering is through other people. Think of something your church might be able to contribute to difficulties in your community.

Fear often keeps us bound and stops us trusting God enough to live lovingly. Encourage individuals to think of something difficult they have been avoiding and to begin to pray about how trusting God could bring change and to outline what specific practical steps this might lead to.

Jo Penberthy is a part-time parish priest in rural Somerset and a part-time student in the area of Christian Theology, Quantum Physics and Reality.

Hypertext links to other websites are for the convenience of users only and do not constitute any endorsement or authorisation by ROOTS for Churches Ltd.