Going Forward

Every day is an adventure, as we move into the future.
No one has passed this way before, so we usually go ahead with a mixture of anxiety and excitement. What that mixture looks like depends very much on our temperament and circumstances.
Hearing and reading some of the comments about the approaching 9/11 anniversary, it has been refreshing to to note the cautious optimism in many. The future could be better than the past.
A powerful example was set, in a very different context, by Tariq Jahan, the father of one of the 3 Muslim men killed in the Birmingham riots last month. His dignified and courageous statement, and the huge peaceful crowd at the funerals, showed that some can rise above revenge and hatred.
Jesus' call to live going forward into the future, not shaped by a painful past but shaped by God's character, is striking. “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbour’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. ' (Matthew 5.43-45)
This is fine rhetoric, and stirring talk. But will this shape how we think and act in the small and big events of our lives? With Jesus' help, we can be different.
Best wishes,
Richard