[This mid-week Reflection was published by Horley Baptist Church on 7th July 2020]
For most of us there are one or two events in contemporary history that have stuck in our memories. For example, many people can recall exactly where they were when they heard that President John Kennedy had been assassinated. That particular event has not stuck with me but I can recall exactly where I was when I heard that the government of Rhodesia had unilaterally declared independence and similarly with the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. Today is the 15th anniversary of one such event.
Early on the 7th of July 2005 I was at work as usual in a secure location close to the Houses of Parliament. A little later it started to rain and I decided to check on our data management system which was housed in a basement that had been known to leak. As I entered the computer suite everything seemed normal but suddenly that changed – monitors went blank, control boards started glowing and there was a distinct smell of over-heated electronics.
I discovered very quickly that London had been attacked by suicide bombers and what I had seen was Scotland Yard commandeering our traffic camera system as part of its emergency response procedures. Fifty-two citizens going about their ordinary business were killed and over 700 injured, tens of thousands of people had their plans disrupted.
In Luke 12, Jesus tells a story about a man whose plans were disrupted. The man’s business had brought him great profit and he decided to retire and live off the resources he had acquired. Verse 20 tells what happened next:
‘But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?”’
In the parallel account in Matthew Jesus adds a further comment
“store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”
As you consider your plans for the day, can you echo the words of Anna Waring – “my Saviour has my treasure, and He will walk with me”?
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Contributed by Steve Humphreys; © the Author
