Reading: “The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet.” Nahum 1:3b 

Thought: Nothing will occur on the national or international scene but that which God has decreed.

Meditation: Politics, economics and the world religious scene are all very fragile. The news of natural disasters also from around the world is unsettling. Anxiety levels are heightened; increasingly linked to world affairs. Mental health statistics are through the roof, and studies show that parental anxieties are creating the same among their children.

Daniel, as a follower of the living God, navigated political turmoil in a pagan culture with dignity. When the structures of true religion were removed, the house of God destroyed and the people of God displaced, Daniel maintained a steadfast and vibrant testimony. My hope is not in Donald Trump as the savior of American conservatism. Nor should I have worried that Hilary Clinton was going to destroy the Church had she become the leader of the free world. Nor Justin Trudeau in Canada. Political systems come and go—sometimes within hours—but the Church remains. The world may convulse and the earth may groan (Romans 8:22); but I must never forget that this is my Father’s world.

This is my Father’s world. I walk a desert lone.
In a bush ablaze to my wondering gaze God makes His glory known.
This is my Father’s world, a wanderer I may roam
Whate’er my lot, it matters not,
My heart is still at home.

This “thought” is taken from the outline of a message preached by pastor Habib Sakr at Grace Chapel, Markham (31st December 2016).