dancingthroughchaos

I found myself holding my breath a couple of weeks ago when the journalist Roman Protasevich was arrested after his Ryanair flight from Athen to Lithuania was diverted to Belarus and escorted to Minsk airport by a fighter jet.  There, he and his girlfriend were escorted from the plane and the world had a pretty good idea of what was probably going to happen next.  Nothing good. 

It reminded me of the history lesson in which we were taught about Gavrilo Princip, the 19 year old nationalist who shot Archduke Ferdinand and his wife in Sarajevo back in June 1914.  I don’t remember a great deal about that lesson, but I do know that the incident sparked a domino-effect of events which culminated in the first world war.  A handful of apparently separate things conspired to bring world events to a point of ‘critical mass’ and exploded into over four years of carnage, mayhem and death.

It was a classic case of the butterfly-effect in which an apparently innocuous event in one place causes an inversely proportional happening elsewhere.  I thought perhaps we were there again.  Off the back of a global pandemic there seem to be a number of serious but unrelated events unfolding around the world which, on some days, suggest we are teetering on the precipice of total disaster.  

China is rattling the cage of world peace and roared recently, not least when the actor John Cena inadvertently called Taiwan a country and was forced to apologise .  The dragon was not amused.  India is in dire straits, suffocating under the catastrophic effects of Covid in a country where so many live on top of each other and is running out of space to both live and die. The USA seems to be back on board with NATO after the G7 summit last week and I’m sure several governments are heaving a collective sigh of relief.  Nevertheless, in Africa Boko Harem and Al Shabaab continue to cause havoc across the continent; in Jerusalem violence between Jews and Palestinians around Temple Mount caused terrible suffering last month; in Brazil Covid has also spiked alarmingly and in Venezuela a humanitarian crisis continues to unfold.  There is little good news filtering through to our 24/7 news platforms.  Refugees, famine, pestilence, conflicts, political posturing, corruption and disinformation circle over and around one another like prize fighters looking for the opening to unleash their anger into any open and vulnerable space.  The four horseman of the apocalypse appear to be stomping their hooves and chomping at the bit in readiness to ride out and do their thing.

So, that’s a fun read, but you can probably see why I held my breath last month, wondering whether the Belarus incident was the feather that would tip the balance of world relationships into the abyss.

And what if it had?  My grandparents who lived through both world wars have passed away; my Dad who lived through the second has also left us, and my Mum at 88 is feeling increasingly weary of the unending friction between people and nations.  Is what we potentially face so different from their experiences?  Well, yes, in terms of technology, sophistication and communication, but in terms of threat to personal comfort and peace of mind, maybe not so much.

As and when such a time should come, I have been considering a number of possible responses:

1. Crawl under the duvet, assume a foetal position and wait for Armageddon to take its course elsewhere.  This doesn’t seem a great option in terms of finding a satisfying solution but the idea of a return to the safety of responsibility-free childhood is alluring.  Who wouldn’t rather plug their own cries with a comforting thumb and reach for the problem-solving snuggy/teddy?
2. Plant one’s head firmly in the sand in good ostrich-fashion.  I think this is basically the posture of denial that insists that all is well with the world, that troubles and strife happen only beyond our borders and therefore have no bearing on our comfortable and, let’s face it, fairly entitled life.  Let’s just ignore them if we can.  I know I can’t seriously engage with this one for any length of time; if you can, good luck.
3. Join the apparently increasing army of conspiracy theorists muttering about ‘Deep State’, Bill Gates, control/micro-chip vaccines, and thus dismiss most of the events of the last 15-18 months and mentally re-set the timeline to January 2020.  Again; good luck with that.
4. Start digging a bunker and hoarding tinned goods for the apocalypse, like the rather nutty folks of the 1970’s, and hope that whatever horrors are unleashed will pass you by as you nestle in your concrete den and wonder whether it wouldn’t have been better to be wiped out in the first 10 seconds after all.
5. ‘Keep calm and carry on.’  Yes, that old wartime adage might yet serve us well and honestly, it seems like the most satisfactory choice.

Truth to tell, I’m most in favour of number 5, with certain modifications.  ‘Live life to the full, and keep your wits about you’, might be my version.  Some us like to prepare for everything, but if we don’t know what those things are then we’re a bit stuck.  Like the Terminator character, Sarah Connor, we could perhaps ‘up’ our fitness regime in readiness for a dystopian future, but that’s about it.  Ancient Jewish wisdom tells us that, like bridesmaids waiting for the bride and groom to turn up, we must have enough ‘oil’ for our lamps to be ready for action when they arrive and not get drowsy or fall asleep in the interim.  The wise women were prepared and the unwise ones missed the whole marriage celebration because they had insufficient resource to take part.

What is our ‘oil’?  I believe it’s the truth and person of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  The Bible tells us that it’s in Him all things hold together and when things fall apart it’s usually because He’s been squeezed out of the picture.  In a post-Christian, secular, humanistic, self-sufficient, gender-fluid, upside-down world, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised.  I’ve said it before, and doubtless will say it again, the difference between religion and faith is crucial.  Yes, religion has been a cause of many conflicts throughout history, but living faith has pioneered peace-making initiatives and extraordinary reconciliations because it understands the power of forgiveness and the joy of liberating grace in its true form. 

Where does this leave us?  What is my task in the uncertain days ahead?  I refuse to give in to gloom and doom, trusting that there is a alternative outcome in the heart and mind of God for those who name Him as Lord.  I am convinced that the invitation to dance through the current and next level of chaos is still very much on offer for each of us.  The steps may be new, but if we submit to the choreographer who knows them inside-out, then we can continue to take our place, look Him in the eyes as our faithful partner, engage with each day, take life by the lapels, squeeze out the amazing breath-taking juice from its’ very core, and find pleasure in the dance even if the scenery is on fire.  Will you trust Him today and join the dance?