My message today is a little unusual because it’s really a message for you in the future. There’s something I want you to remember.

You have just been through an unusual event and most people found aspects of it hard. Life doesn’t always go the way we plan. I want you to remember that even if something is unexpected or unpleasant or uncomfortable or hard, you can get through it. We call this quality ‘resilience’. The Bible calls it ‘endurance’ or ‘perseverance’.

The reading we’ve just heard makes a link between going through suffering and hope, which seems kind of strange. Paul, who wrote this passage, noted that when people kept doing the right thing and kept living faithfully, even in hard times, they developed a growing confidence that God is greater than the bad stuff (Romans 5:1-5).

I want you to remember that you got through the lockdown, even though parts of it were hard. And I want you to remember that, even when life throws challenges at you, God’s kindness and goodness are actually greater.