A door of hope in a Brave New World
How can we live comfortably and confidently in the New New Normal?
My last blog post saw me writing the crest of a wave, relishing the new-found peace and quiet and the wonders of God’s creation whose beauty seemed magnified in the stillness. I had settled into a new routine, learnt a new rhythm and, aside from missing my family, had adapted to the ‘New Normal’ with apparent ease. Then restrictions started to be lifted, and I felt as if the rug had been pulled from under my feet as I struggled to keep my balance in the ever-shifting landscape. What was once familiar now seems hostile: empty chairs in your local coffee shop, an increasingly busier high street to navigate, and emptier buses populated by strangely silent mask-clad passengers. ‘Unlockdown stress’ has ramped up and has left many feeling exhausted, anxious and unsecure. So how do we not just survive, but thrive, living comfortably and confidently in this Brave New World as obstacles come flying our way like deckchairs sliding around on the Titanic?
I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards and will make the valley of Achor [trouble] a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth.
Hosea 2 :12-14, NIV
I feel as though I am emerging from a period of hibernation into a world I need help to navigate. In an increasingly noisy landscape we need to find quiet places in which to rest in God’s presence, that He might speak to us, restore us and reassure us, equipping us for how he would have us live with certainty in an uncertain world in which boundaries and legislation are in a constant state of flux. Talking to God and feeding on His word will help us not to be overwhelmed by the chaos as we take out first tentative steps in post-lockdown society. God invites us to walk the tightrope of faith with Him, promising to catch us if we fall, yet if we keep our eyes fixed on Him we can keep our balance, and this act in itself will deepen our faith and trust.
This is what the LORD says—he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters… See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. Isaiah 43:16 &19, NIV
The Holy Spirit is the ‘new thing’ in us, the internal compass which enables us to navigate and become familiar with the unfamiliar landscape of the ‘New New Normal.’ He will equip us to be able to make streams of His love in the with-Covid landscape, to walk carefully but confidently.
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into heart of the sea… God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day… The Lord God Almighty is within us, the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Psalm 46:1,2, 5 &7, NIV
In With, Skye Jethani describes hope as ‘the assurance that what we experience in this world will not win, but that God’s purposes will overcome.’ Psalm 46 invites us to take shelter in our God who controls the universe, and yet who made His home among us, who lives in us through his Spirit to strengthen and sustain us and bring us through. In the Old Testament we read how God brings Noah safely to dry ground, how he parts the Red sea to enable the Israelites to cross to safety, an amazing illustration of how God is in control of the powerful forces of His universe, how He can bring order out of chaos, and that those who are united with Him do not have to fear the unpredictable and powerful forces which surround them. ‘With God there is hope, even in a world which seems to be drowning in chaos’ (Skye Jethani, With). And so it is that He will bring us through the pandemic.
The rainbow we have seen displayed in the windows of homes and shops is a wonderful reminder both of our creator God’s power over the natural forces of His world and of His promises. When I see the rainbow I am reminded that his banner over us is love, hope, peace, faithfulness and goodness. God promises hope for all of creation; Noah’s story, our stories, exist within the context of our salvation story, and we are reminded that hope is found in God rather than in our circumstances. The world has changed, but God has not; He is here and His presence with us brings hope. Jesus was in the boat with His disciples when He calmed the storm.
“When I see the rainbow I am reminded that his banner over us is love, hope, peace, faithfulness and goodness.”
Let’s keep marvelling at the beauty of His creation, a tangible reminder of His faithfulness, the flowers which bloom faithfully each year offering hope and promise. Celebrating God’s truths and the things which haven’t changed is a key component of maintaining our stability and bringing us hope and peace. The hope we have in Him brings us joy, and enables us to keep on singing his songs in a strange land, which in turn enables us to be fruitful. Walking carefully but confidently in this new landscape demands a whole new level of trust. Imagine that God is not cheering you on from the other end of the tightrope, but that He’s walking it with you, backwards, encouraging you to take the next step as you look straight into His eyes.
Nicole Barnard