A FIVE WEEK COURSE FOR LENT GROUPS

conventionally religious’, but in a moment of profound despair, when he felt as though he was literally falling down under its weight, he found himself crying out loud, ‘God help me’. To his surprise, he was immediately aware of returning strength, of an inner renewal that was to see him through the remaining years of his captivity. The divine Shepherd is never very far away and is always within earshot of our cries. Not an ‘emergency’ service For Christians, however, this can’t simply be an emergency service, a sort of spiritual 999 call. It’s true that you can have a phone and only use it for emergencies, but it has so many other things to offer: friendly contacts, information, messages of hope and love and reassurance from those dear to us. In our relationship with God, we can hardly build a sense of his continuing presence if we only speak to him in emergencies! As John McCarthy found, God hears our cry, and may well respond. But long-term blessing calls for long-term commitment.

Jesus promised that he would be with his followers always, ‘to the end of the age’ (Matthew 28:20). The Christian life is essentially a journey in his company. Being human, we may not always be conscious of the presence of God in our lives, but whether we are aware of it or not at any given moment, Jesus has solemnly promised it. On the last evening of his earthly life, he assured his disciples that, through the promised Holy Spirit, both his Father and he himself would be with them in the future (John 14:16-23). That promise has never been withdrawn.

CANON DAVID WINTER was Head of Religious Broadcasting at the BBC. He is a prolific author and a popular broadcaster, well known from his contributions to

Radio 4’s Thought for the Day.