moving on

I missed the assemblies along at the school today. I was otherwise occupied.

My time was spent with the two P7 classes instead.

Scripture Union have a superb little booklet designed for those who are moving on to secondary school. It's called It's your move and it is really brilliant. I gave each child a copy of the booklet at the end of the class - and spent the time with the children beforehand working through some issues to do with their moving school. Changes, challenges and choices.

It was time (and money) well spent. The children were great and the time itself was useful.

They're excited, in some ways.

But there's a lot of fear and worry around as well. The big unknown of a whole new place, and a whole crowd of people most of whom they will never have met - and most of whom are bigger than they're going to be. Scary.

We none of us like the unknown.

I'd prepared a work-sheet for each of the children and told them a bit about Daniel - another young teenager having to face a new 'school'.

There are some interesting parallels! And when Daniel's story is put in those terms (and it's not distorting the thing one small bit), I think it begins to dawn on their minds that the Bible is not out of date. It deals with the issues we're dealing with still to this day.

There are all sorts of scary unknowns we all have to face. For some, like the children, it's the challenge of changing their school. For some, a new job. For some, their having to move.

And for some, it's the path of bereavement. The dark, distressing corridor of grief: the sequel to the passing of a person who's been dear: the entrance to an unknown world of life without a loved one.

There's a lot to be done when a person has died. For most of us it's mainly unknown territory. Unknown and unfamiliar. It's not a very comfortable time at all.

That corridor of grief is always better walked by folk in company. I was with a grieving family this afternoon. In a sense, not actually doing much more than simply being there with them at their side. That's sometimes all that people need.

They knew what one of the hymns to be sung at the funeral service is going to be. The Lord's my shepherd [the 'traditional' version]. It's got that marvelous central verse -

Yea, though I walk in death's dark vale,

Yet will I fear no ill,

For Thou art with me, and Thy rod

And staff me comfort still.

'Thou art with me.'

That's what we, all of us, need to know. There are times like today when I know that my presence is itself that statement of fact. The Lord himself is present. That truth becomes their experience.

The Lord comes out of the Scriptures and into their lives.

That's what I'm praying each day, wherever I am and whatever it is that I'm doing. Whether with the children and their moving on to secondary school. Or with a family as they make their way on through the corridor of grief.