Thinkaloud | the best of times

… holy bravado and a fearless charm

This is the best time of all to be alive, to be vibrant with the joy of the Lord and the expectation - founded on solid fact - that there truly is nothing to fear, despite the gloomy predictions of the doomsayers, Tragically, many today are experiencing the truth of the biblical phrase “fear involves torment” (1 John 4:18), without the consolation the Scriptures offer.

The opening lines of Dickens’s A tale of two cities: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” are often quoted by people who ignore the first phrase and concentrate on the second. For them life is a dirge, a burden, a frantic race to beat the clock and thus to “fill the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds’ worth of distance run.” They are so convinced that the world is grinding to a halt that they spent their time either in pious, head-in-the-sand incantations that they call prayer or by madly embracing pleasures that offer the most gratification, regardless of personal cost. Both options are selfish and unworthy.

We must always be aware that God has a loving and intensely active interest in what happens to each individual member of the human race. He became one of us so that we would have the exciting and breathtaking opportunity of escaping from the egotistical futility of a self-centered existence and by His grace become empowered to live a life of high splendour, merry laughter and brimming joyfulness.

The best that God has to offer is available to those who ask in sincerity. His promises include the assurance that those who believe in Jesus Christ as Lord are thus enabled to live calm, serene and healing lives in the midst of the most brutal and terrifying circumstances. Such believers do not fear death; they have already “died to self”; they have been delivered from the fear of the grave. They are winsome, wholesome people who are busy doing ordinary things happily and well. They are not ashamed of their daily work, their lives are open to inspection, and they have a holy bravado and a fearless charm that radiates like a light in a dark room.

Why is it the best of all times to be alive? Simply because the Creator Lord is present on the earth in the lives of believers and through the power of the Holy Spirit. He has something for everyone to do, tasks that will help to make the world a happy and healthy place. He is the Prince of Peace, and the peaceable kingdom that He has established and rules has been the dream of thoughtful people of all ages.

Another reason why it is the best time of all to be alive is the joy of sharing the good news of the gospel and in this way bringing people to know the One whose presence makes every day the best yet. God has committed unto us the privilege of sharing the “gospel of reconciliation.” In a time when there is so much interest in spirituality, it is essential to ensure that spiritually hungry people receive the true Bread of Life, Jesus Christ. People need to be turned to Him, not to themselves. True life is found in God - who is life - not in the inner self.

Finally, it is the best time of all to be alive because Jesus Christ has promised to return in power and glory, and He may do so before this day draws to its close. Though such a thought strikes terror into the hearts of unbelievers, those who serve Him look expectantly for that blessed hope. What a day that will be!

Writer: Lieut.-Colonel Maxwell Ryan is a former Editor in Chief in Canada and the UK. In retirement he is a copy editor of theRubicon and the author of two series on theRubicon - Resurrected Writers and Thinkaloud.

3 Comments to Thinkaloud | the best of times

1. William Booth famously said ‘You can’t preach to a man with an empty stomach’.

   Forgive me for being a little Cartesian, but yout article only points out how good it is to be alive ’spiritually’ (which I accept). It says nothing about the physical condition people find themselves in today.

   Will such spirituallity change the fact that the individual has no job, no prospect of employment in the near or medium future at least (if not permanently), no money to pay mortgage/rent, being evicted from home, difficulty buying groceries (can only afford stomach fillers with little nutritional value), etc, etc, etc,?

   Such a dichotomy between the two does indeed result in many people living in severe chronic depression. It’s not being reported, but I personally know of many people who are attempting suicide, or in relationship break-downs as a resulty of such ‘physical/earthly’ pressures. I suspect there are a lot more suicides than normal (but it isn’t being reported).

   Many will say ‘trust in God and He will provide’ (and all that stuff). Having interviewed and met many people who claim to have had this happen to them, I don’t actually believe it. What they ALL (everyone I’ve spoken to - and I’ve spoken to a lot) omit are the rational/physical reasons they were provided for. They so fervently believe that ‘God magically provided’ that they ‘forget’ the reason they had food in the fridge was because they went to the shop and bought it. (I have actually been in situations where I was with them when they bought the food, but they insist black and blue that God did a ‘loaves and fishes’ miracle in their fridge and say I’m lying). The reason they have money to buy food is because they pawned a treasured posesion (but tell people it was lost or stolen or (in one case) actually deny they ever had it). God doesn’t provide for our physical needs - that’s for us to do. At most I will say God provides by instructing all humanity to care for each other. If God did, why do christians still go hungry? Why are they still persecuted? Why are they still evicted from their homes?

   Yes, spiritually, it is the best of times. It is certainly that for the church. The old saying ‘when there is war or calamity, the churches are full. When there is peace, the churches are empty’ is applicable now. But physically, it is probably the worst in living memory in the western world. The reality is that our current global economy is actually worse than it was in the Great Depression of the 1930’s, it’s just that a lot isn’t being reported.

   So, while I find the attempt at a paradigm shift aplaudable, in the current climate, I also find it more than a little insensitive. It won’t change the fact that an individual can only have one meal a day, or they face the prospect of soon having nowhere to live etc. Such a paradigm shift in these days can only lead to mental instability and breakdown.

   Yours in Christ,
   Graeme.
Graeme Randall on May 17th, 2009

2. I’ll second that Graeme.
Stephanie on May 18th, 2009

3. Friends:
   Thanks for your comments, but at the risk of appearing to offend I would say “lighten up!” My verbal musings did not suggest that “God’s in His heaven, all’s right with the world”. What the article did say is that believers have every reason to be confident and joyful, regardless of circumstances.
   My experience of living and working in Africa among the poorest of the poor simply reinforces this. And as chaplain in the psychiatric ward and emergency department of large hospital for some years I spent hours with distressed people, many of whom became open to healing through a clear understanding of the joyous gospel.
   Live in the peace of Jesus.
   Maxwell Ryan
Maxwell Ryan on May 18th, 2009

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