Thought for 4 December

 Colossians 2:8-10

⁸ Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world,

rather than from Christ. ⁹ For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. ¹⁰ So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

I think this will be the first time that Billy Connolly has featured in these thoughts but when I saw the words in today’s passage of scripture, it reminded me of one of his stories.  He relates a situation about a terrible road accident featuring multiple vehicles and multiple casualties.  He describes it all in amusing and fantastic detail in the way that he’s brilliant at, with smoke rising all around and spectators beginning to form, as they do.  It’s obviously total carnage and then he says that a voice rings out and it’s a man bursting on to the scene saying ‘stand aside, I’m an Aromatherapist’!!!!

If any of us were among the victims of that road accident, I don’t believe that those words would bring much comfort.  ‘Stand aside, I’m a surgeon/doctor/nurse’ would be much more preferable.  Even so, the professional folks involved in healthcare are not infallible.  They can and do make mistakes in diagnosis,  in treatment and in aftercare.   When questioned, the usual defence is insufficient funding from national and local government leading to uncompetitive salaries, industrial unrest etc.

It just shows yet again that when we put all our trust in the services that are available to us, whether with traditional therapies or alternative therapies, it doesn’t always work out the way we would hope for.  As long as men and women are involved, there will always be some degree of fallibility.

I sincerely hope I have caused no offence to Aromatherapists or to anyone who doesn’t feel it appropriate for Billy Connolly to be mentioned in this context.  Maybe some of these alternative therapies and remedies do work for some people to some degree.  It left me thinking that if we believers were as vocal about our beliefs as Billy is about his unbelief, maybe within our national church, we wouldn’t be having discussions about the closure of church buildings that are part of our heritage and our history.  Maybe the conversation should be more along the lines of what we can do to bring people of all ages to Jesus and begin the process of refilling these much-loved houses of worship.

We can only enjoy the fulfillment of the promise made in scripture of life eternal in the presence of the living God by placing all our hopes on Jesus Christ who is the head of all things, over every ruler and authority and the only one we can turn to that is infallible.

Prayer – Heavenly Father, we thank you for Jesus and that all things were made by him and for him. Help us come to realise that without him, life becomes so temporary and lacks meaning and purpose. Help us avoid being influenced by the tempting arguments, humanist philosophies and some man-made ideas inevitably looking for answers to life, anywhere except the bible, within which lives a real truth and purpose only to be found in the Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you that he is the only way, the only truth and the only life.  May we grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus every day of our lives.  Amen