Every Day with Jesus

One of the great privileges of going to church is to meet elderly saints, the kind who have walked with Jesus for so much of their life that it seems to shine through on their faces. This is how I picture Simeon and Anna, two devout prophets who yearned to see the coming of the Messiah. Anna is described as ‘very old' at ‘eighty-four', and she'd enjoyed only seven years of marriage before becoming a widow (vv36–37). She spent her years worshipping ‘night and day, fasting and praying' (v37). God told Simeon he would see the Messiah in his lifetime (v26). 

Unfortunate residents of Slough are forever blighted by the infamous poem by John Betjeman, which suggests that the town is so awful it should be razed to the ground. Though literary critics say it's a protest poem against industrialisation, nevertheless, several mayors of Slough have objected to it. 

Do evil people live longer lives? Former president Robert Mugabe, initially celebrated as a progressive anti-colonialist ruler of Zimbabwe, committed genocide against approximately 20,000 Ndebele people. Social scientist Rhoda E. Howard-Hassmann wrote there was ‘clear evidence that Mugabe was guilty of crimes against humanity',* and Uganda-born John Sentamu criticised his ‘unjust and brutal regime'.** Mugabe lived to the ripe old age of 95. 

Christmas can be a joyful time with church and family, full of happiness. However, it can also be a painful time, full of loneliness and sorrow. If we have endured grief, loss, or trauma during the year, this will be the time we feel it acutely. If we have had painful Christmases in the past, it's hard to celebrate without those memories casting shadows on the present. 

Despite the Magi having to stop in at Jerusalem and ask for directions to Bethlehem, they didn't actually need that information. God was the one who ended up leading them. They had seen the star originally when Jesus was born, charted the approximate location, and ended up in Jerusalem. 

A theologian once asked her class for biblical metaphors for waiting. The men spoke first and listed growing plants, harvesting and farming. The theologian nodded but kept asking for more suggestions. Finally, a woman spoke up. ‘Pregnancy,' she said, and cited Romans 8:22, which describes all of creation in labour pains. The men looked at her in astonishment. That metaphor would never have occurred to them. 

The long wait for a Messiah began at the beginning. When Abraham was promised a descendant who would bless all peoples, the world waited for a son. When Moses, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Micah, Hosea and John the Baptist rebuked God's people for continuing to sin and abandon God's instructions, the world waited for a saviour from those sins. 

For the avoidance of controversy, pick your own favourite football team, and imagine them playing in a cup final. The fans are yelling, cheering them on in the stands. Just then, it's announced that the most skilful football player who ever lived (again – you pick!) is coming to play on your team. 

In many parts of the world, it is illegal for Christians to worship God or share their faith. To protect their lives, Christians must meet together covertly. In 2022, Open Doors USA made a list of what it considered the most dangerous countries for Christians to live in. 

In June 2023, two tragedies occurred at sea. Five people died in Titan, a submersible designed to explore the wreckage of the Titanic. Millions of dollars were spent trying to rescue them. Meanwhile, 650 people, mainly women and children, drowned in an overcrowded boat that sank in Greek waters. 

Anyone who faces uncertainty in life needs an Elizabeth by their side. Before Mary had to face the music with Joseph and tell him she was pregnant, and before anyone else knew, God had tipped her off that one of her relatives was also having a miracle pregnancy. 

Some people seem to have a very hard furrow to plough in life. Whether it's a tough job where you do the right thing but face criticism, or the call to be a prophetic voice when people don't want to hear you, it can feel like you're on your own and it's just too demanding. 

When God says something good about you, you should believe it. That seems obvious. And yet so many of us struggle to truly receive God's gifts and blessings because something in our spirit stops us from believing them. Perhaps you have no trouble believing that God has a good plan for others, but, deep inside, you don't know if you can trust God to be good to you. 

If Jesus were to return tomorrow, would you be ready for Him? This is a fairly terrifying question that preachers ask at Christian conferences, and it can cause us to re-examine our priorities and character (as well as perhaps secretly feeling disappointed that we'd miss out on that party next month). 

The experience of auditioning for a primary school play used to be very intimidating. The speaking parts were scarce, so if you didn't get picked, the rejection would sting. Nowadays, schools seem to have plays written so that every child can play a part, even if it's one line. Everyone gets to join in and play. 

All leadership involves power. As Lord Acton famously said, ‘Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.' A recent study, reported in The Atlantic, showed that the more powerful you are, the less empathetic you become.* Leadership should not be embarked upon lightly, and those of us who are leaders should regularly evaluate our practice and character.

Have you ever been in a situation where you felt stuck, with no escape? It could be where you're living, a frustrating job, or even a difficult marriage. It could be that your health has deteriorated, and you feel helpless. It could be that parenting or caring for others is taking too much of a toll, but there's nothing you can do about it.

What does it feel like to live ‘in the land of deep darkness' (v2)? Depression or grief can feel like a life where someone has switched all the lights out, and there is no joy. Darkness can also mean a feeling of lostness – we can no longer see our way ahead and don't know which step to take next. It can also imply evil – we may be surrounded by evil people and desperate situations, with no way out. Living in darkness is lonely, too. 

It is hard to envisage anything so bad that a parent would choose to turn away from their grown-up child, but addiction is surely one. Severely affected addicts can be so destructive and manipulative that in the end the parent, in tears, is forced to stop contact with them until they become clean. It's a drastic and devastating action, taken only when all other options have been exhausted. 

If you've ever been asked to read from Micah 5 at a Christmas service, you'll know that the word ‘Ephrathah' is very hard to pronounce, and that no one seems to know what it means. Like the Isaiah 7 verse about the virgin giving birth, often that's the only verse that people remember, and the original context gets lost. 

In its original context, the verse about the virgin giving birth is NOT about Jesus. Let me explain. The challenge for any political leader is to know which powers to align yourself with. Ahaz, King of Judah, was anxious about the threat of attack from Aram and Israel (vv1–2). So God sends Isaiah to reassure Ahaz that those two countries are spent as powers, and not to worry (vv3–9). Ahaz only needs to trust in God. 

Rosalind Franklin was a scientist who helped discover the double helix structure of DNA. Sadly, she contracted cancer and died at the age of thirty-seven. She never won a Nobel Prize. After her death, three of her male colleagues collected the Nobel Prize instead, and only recently has her part in the research been recognised. It's all too common that people can dedicate their whole life to one particular goal, only for it to be snatched away and someone else take the credit. If we're not careful, it can make us bitter. 

Reading maps well is an acquired skill. A wiggly, winding road from point A to point B seems pointless when you could go straight, unless you're very carefully examining the contours, seeing the numbers increase and realising that going straight would mean ploughing through the middle of a sizeable mountain. Similarly, the symbols for marshes are also worth learning. (I may be speaking from experience.) 

There's nothing like teaching a children's Sunday school group to keep you theologically sharp, because children don't shy away from asking difficult questions. One pesky question about the whole process of the Exodus is why God had to send quite so many plagues, with Pharoah hardening his heart and God allowing it. Why such a long wait while the Israelites endured more hardship?

When we look at difficult situations in the world, our prayers can feel so puny. ‘Dear God, please bring peace to Europe' is a short prayer about a large and complex issue, and at times it may feel pointless to pray this way. We look to the heroes or people in power to do something about it, because who are we, as ordinary people, to influence history on the grand stage? 

Nelson Mandela was always committed to non-violent protest against apartheid – until the Sharpeville Massacre of 1960 where sixty-nine black protestors were killed by South African police. There seemed no way for change other than violent retaliation, so Mandela became the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the military wing of the African National Congress.* 

Have you ever had a situation where you did something embarrassing, and everyone around you started laughing at you? It's the stuff of nightmares, because it taps into the deepest part of us where we feel shame. Sarah had reason to feel shame – she carried the disgrace of not being a mother in a society that only valued women for motherhood. 

In counselling training, students are told they should try to mirror the person's body language as far as possible to show empathy. However, there are important exceptions. Sometimes a person can laugh with ‘gallows laughter'. 

There are two types of people in life: those who act like they are the hero of the story and everything revolves around them, and those who feel they're more like a sidekick, even in their own life. Hero-types tend to be confident about their purpose and importance in life, whereas ‘sidekicks' find it harder to define themselves and their purpose outside of other people. 

Think of something you truly need or long for in this world in order to feel your life has meaning. Have you thought of it? Now imagine that God has prophesied you will have that very thing you're longing for, and your long waiting will be over. How do you feel then? Now imagine that it's been ten years, and the joyful prophecy you told everyone about has never come to pass. 

How does the Bible begin? You might want to say, ‘with creation', but look closer: it begins with waiting. Before God spoke the world into existence and time as we know it began, the Spirit was there, waiting, poised, hovering over the deep. 

After fifty-two days of prayer, hard work and overcoming the enemy's deception, the wall was completed. Fifty-two days. The walls had been left in ruins for seventy years and yet the city was transformed in a matter of days. 

Nehemiah was entitled to money and food from the people. As mentioned earlier, to demand this was the practise of previous governors. It was considered normal to request more, even though the King already provided them an ox, six sheep and some poultry each day and a wine delivery every ten days (v18a). Power and wealth are often insatiable. 

I am not sure how big your table is, but I am sure it is not as big as Nehemiah's – he seemed to fit 150 people around it! Admittedly, the phrase ‘ate at my table' may have simply meant that he provided food for 150 people each day, but it is still an incredible image of hospitality. 

Work is not something to be avoided, it is a good thing. We are designed to work, to care, to produce, to create and to be fruitful. From the beginning of time, Adam is placed in a beautiful garden where everything was as it should be. 

We live in a self-obsessed world, where our own selfish needs and desires are central to the decisions we make. A commonly used phrase would be ‘me first' or ‘look after number one', and reinforced by encouraging comments such as ‘you do you' or ‘look after yourself'. It all seems a lovely and kind approach. But 

Nehemiah demanded of himself and the other wealthy members of the community, that they would restore any assets and repay any interest that had been charged. A big ask. But the response is positive and all those in attendance promise to give everything back and demand nothing more from the people. 

Many television shows replicate the idea of restoration. It is heart-warming to see something that seemed to have had its day and lost all value being restored to its former glory. Whether that be a piece of furniture found in a skip or a pet that became separated from its owner, or an adult fostered as a child discovering family they had never met. Restoration is bringing something back to its original owner, place or condition. 

Jesus said to His disciples in Matthew 26 that the poor will always be with you, having just said in Matthew 22 to love our neighbours as ourselves, and in even clearer detail in Matthew 25 about how in the final days God will judge us on how we treat people. Throughout His life on earth, Jesus modelled what He taught by intentionally looking out for opportunities to include society's outcasts. 

At the end of chapter 4 there is great victory over the enemy, the wall continues to be built, albeit slower, as they hold a sword in one hand and a trowel in another. But now there is infighting and it seems as though the building work has stopped as it does not get mentioned. It is interesting how in just a few days they go from this beautiful community in chapter 3, working hard together across generations and trades to build this wall. 

The motto created by Lord Baden-Powell for the Scout's movement was ‘Be prepared'. It was the idea that from a young age, Scouts would learn to survive and thrive, wherever they might find themselves. That they would be able to tie knots, make a shelter, stay safe and know what a woggle was and how it should be used. 

In our home we have a large family. So, over the years, we have created a tradition of ringing a bell when it is time for the evening meal. Once the bell is rung, children come from all directions, salivating at the prospect of food. If we have visitors, there is often some surprise at the sound of a bell being rung and even more surprise when children appear instantaneously at the meal table, seated with cutlery in hands and ready to eat.

Poor Nehemiah. The wall is half built and everyone has done so well to get to this point, but now people are tired and starting to grumble. Just as he is trying to work out how to keep the work moving forward, he gets given a message repeatedly: ‘They will come from all directions and attack us'. 

Years ago I ran the London Marathon. It was an incredible day. I had trained for months; I was in good condition and joined thousands of others on the starting line. I remember the moment it started to go wrong. Tower Bridge, around the halfway mark. I was feeling good and thinking, ‘This is great, I am halfway. Just got to do that again.' 

It is often in children's movies and comic books that enemies are obvious in their actions. The reality is that in life the enemy is often sneaky. Confusion is caused, by the whisper of gossip in the staff canteen, the seemingly innocent question in the company boardroom, the text message or social media post that could be read in many different ways. 

Is the glass half full or half empty? This is often the question that is asked to determine whether you are an optimist or a pessimist. But life is never as simple as the remains of a drink in a glass. There is always something that needs doing. 

I don't know what your natural reaction is when you face opposition and persecution. Maybe it is to run away from the situation, to get yourself out of the room, away from the confrontation and hope it will go away. Or maybe you react with excess strength and retaliate, saying things you later regret or getting physical and pushing the problem away. 

As we mentioned earlier, haters are going to hate. It seems that success, which we prayed for yesterday, breeds opposition. But this seemingly overnight success was a long time coming. Nehemiah's predecessor was Zerubbabel (Ezra 1–6), who led the first Jewish exiles back to Jerusalem and completed the rebuilding of the temple in 516 BC. But rather than continue rebuilding the city, they stopped. 

This is a beautiful moment in the story of Nehemiah. We started in chapter 1 with Nehemiah feeling alone in the pain for the state of his homeland (1:4). From that point we see his concerns being shared with the king (2:5), then with the few (2:12), then with the leaders (2:17) and now everyone is playing their part. 

Challenges will always come our way. The author James writes, ‘Consider it pure joy… whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance' (Jas 1:2–3) We may not enjoy them, but life is full of hurdles to be overcome. 

It was once said that leadership is simply taking people from position A to position B. To achieve this you have to either explain to those you are leading how bad position A is or how much better position B will be.