Keeping in Touch

Royal Mail are up against plenty of competition, and they believe it is unfair. There are so many different ways in which letters and parcels can be delivered that Royal Mail are being squeezed. We shall see what the competition watchdog has to say. 

For ordinary people like us, there are so many ways to communicate, and to keep in touch with one another that we are often literally spoilt by our choices.

But because there are so many options does not necessarily make us any better at keeping in touch with one another. Assorted social media platforms give us the opportunity to be public about various levels of communication, and to touch base with one another, but the long letters of previous generations seem to find no modern equivalent.

Many are people who have told me in days gone by that 'you don't have to go to church to be a Christian'. Part of what they are saying is that an hour a week doesn't necessarily translate into a transformed life. But because we can pray anywhere and any time doesn't mean that we take all the available opportunities. Again, I am challenged by the relentless determination of the Psalmist, who loved to make a special effort to go up to the Temple in Jerusalem. 

How lovely is your dwelling place,
    O Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

 I long, yes, I faint with longing
    to enter the courts of the Lord.
With my whole being, body and soul,
    I will shout joyfully to the living God. (Psalm 84.1-2)

I am challenged by the outspoken passion and heart-felt desire to be closer to God. I wonder why I don't feel like this very often. Maybe it is because I don't shape my life in the way these people did. 

What joy for those whose strength comes from the Lord,
    who have set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
 When they walk through the Valley of Weeping,
    it will become a place of refreshing springs.
    The autumn rains will clothe it with blessings.
 They will continue to grow stronger,
    and each of them will appear before God in Jerusalem.' (Psalm 84.5-7)

As we take time - and it always takes time - to focus on being in the presence of the God who loves us and wants to share life with us, then many things will be seen differently. These ancient pilgrims had to set their minds on a pilgrimage, for it didn't happen without careful planning and deliberate action.

At the start of this new phase of my life, I need to make sure that I do all that I can to be keeping in touch with the God who is my strength and my shield. How about you.

Best wishes,

Richard