Certainty in uncertain times...

Musing today comes from sunny Geelong, where, as Cheryl says, "Fine weather simply means not raining, at least not this minute".This is our last week looking at Isaiah. Numerous people have reported enjoying it; the big story, how the prophet's scatter gun truth telling fits into history and the different strategies different speakers bring to it.A lot has happened in the 10 or so weeks we have been looking at Isaiah. North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and the Middle East have seen pro democracy uprisings, the United States has sent the world economies into turmoil by threatening to default on paying their 14.5 trillion dollars of debt, Greece and Italy and, I am sure, other fragile nations have gone into fiscal meltdown with Germany the one economy holding Europe up, the UK descends into anarchy echoing a sense of deep seated powerlessness and dispossession while The News of the World and Murdoch enterprises sinks into a slough of their own making , Australia meanwhile is driving a carbon tax and pondering gay marriage while planning to send refugee children back to Malaysia for "processing".I am well aware that it is all very well to be simplistic - like Mr Murdoch's Shock Jocks - and that the global issues of the past three months are just symptoms of humanity in action over centuries and millennia. But it makes the voice of the prophets seem brutally contemporary and relevant.Expediency, the short term view, quick fixes, gain without pain, the promise of an easy life, unquestioning loyalty, an "I'm so special" outlook are all tackled head on by the prophets. Their antedote was never to look at the prevailing circumstances but to look to God. I think a lot about how I look to God as I get older.How do you do it, if you do it? If you don't look to God, who or what do you look to?How do I do it?Fortunately, I committed early on to learning about Him. Again and again I return to what I have learnt about his character, his conduct, his passions, his forgiveness, his salvation. Growth in knowledge is essential.Secondly, I have a much wider perspective nowadays. I look for what I know of God operating and absent in the world. Everyday and every interaction is a bible study. What is God doing here, I ask?Thirdly, I try and have people I can share the everyday experiences and encounters with. They are like my spirit level or standard measure. Others do this by journaling or thinking quietly, I find listening and discussion helps.Fourthly, I determine to tread lightly and leave small footprint. It isn't about me, this life, I'm just travelling through, so the less convolution the better; love God, love people, that's enough.Finally, invest! Jeremiah bought a field in a place that was under siege as a symbol to himself and others that his faith was in God not circumstances. I call it "skin in the game". You get a say if you have some skin in the game.That's how I live in steady times and uncertain times and I have never experienced a greater confidence in the love, power and sovereignty of God. Pray the same for you.BlessingsMalcolm