“Encouragers in a dangerous time”
Texts : Acts 4.32-37; 9.26-31; 11.19-26 The only constant is change Isn’t it nice when things are calm, predictable, comfortable, when there is no anxiety in our hearts, no unknown factors to worry about, no changes to deal with? Sounds nice, right? Of course, life is rarely like that – indeed, the life of most congregations is rarely like that. Most of the time, life is chaotic – full of often unwanted or unexpected changes and various crises, and we often feel woefully ill-equipped to deal with the unrelenting stream of complicated situations that insist on coming our way. And yet, even though this is what “normal” life is like, we often react as if things shouldn’t be this way. When chaos erupts, we often respond with shock, fear, hostility and resentment. We try desperately to hang on to what is familiar and comfortable, to what makes us feel secure and confident in who we are and in what we are doing – to what ...