We have seen His goodness, His mercy and compassion

In another week, we will be entering a more liberating phase of the country’s exit from lockdown restrictions. Despite some concerns, it looks like the vaccine roll out in the United Kingdom continues to be successful. Personally, the freedom to meet with my family without conditions is priceless. The pandemic seemingly came out of the blue and the world was largely unprepared. The number of deaths in this country and globally tells the whole story.

But God has been faithful. We have seen his goodness, his mercies and his compassion. We are coming out of lockdown. If you are reading this, you have every reason to be thankful because God has kept you, despite all the threats of this evil pandemic. Psalm 136 details all the reasons why we should praise God. Verse 1 says: ‘Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures for ever.’ We can add to that Psalm: Give thanks, He has saved us from this pandemic!

So, what lessons have we learnt? What good thoughts and habits are we going to retain when this is fully over? Proverbs 1:5 says ‘A wise man will hear and increase in learning, and a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel.’ Below are a few ‘lessons’ I have learnt personally:

• I can be still in the presence of God and in my own presence. Enforced isolation taught me not to rush around, but ‘hide’ myself in Christ (Colossians 3:3).

• I know what matters most – God, family, good health, kindness, generosity and love for others. We all need to re-set our values.

• I value my employer more and take my job more seriously than I ever did. God kept my job while many lost their livelihoods.

Take a moment to reflect on the goodness and mercy of God over the past 15 months and list all that you are thankful for!