大象传媒

Good morning. There are some key moments in a lifetime when we remember where we were. The first time a man walked on the moon, the day the Berlin Wall came down, or 9/11. For many of us who grew up in Northern Ireland during what were called the 鈥楾roubles' we remember where we were, twenty years ago today, when the IRA declared a ceasefire.

I was off the Scottish mainland on the island of Iona when I heard the news. Like many others I received the headlines not as a cause for wild celebration, (ceasefires from all sides had come and gone before) but as another determined step along a difficult road towards peace.

Landmark moments don鈥檛 always come bursting out of the blue. The moon landings had years of preparation and the wall only collapsed after decades of diplomatic pressure. Northern Ireland had been moving forward under cautious dialogue, long before the ceasefire ever came. Even St Paul鈥檚 famous Road to Damascus conversion was not quite as sudden as its popular usage suggests. Before he ever set foot on the journey that saw him turn from persecuting Christians to being one himself, St Paul had already spent much time thinking about God.

There鈥檚 often a long, slow hinterland behind moments of significant change. And what is true for world history can be true in our lives too. Others may not remember every incident that called for our perseverance or sacrifices we made along the way. But on days like this, as we remember where we were when the breakthrough finally came, we can draw deeply on the stories of our past to help us face the challenges of today.聽聽

God who has been there through the long nights of waiting
and in the morning when prayers were finally answered聽
bring us strength sufficient for today
and bright hope for tomorrow
Amen