Happenings 19 November 2020

How we view risk in living is so important. Life, of course, is full of risk, but so often we perceive risk as an active thing. By that I mean, we tend to unconsciously attach risk to actions, steps or initiatives that we might take. Perhaps we have been trained into this from the cradle. When we talk with our kids about road-safety, for example, we always emphasise risk attached to our actions (“Don’t walk out in front of that bus, Johnny!”). In doing so, we forget to emphasise that failing to act is also a real risk. If Johnny doesn’t at some point venture out across the road, he will stay stuck in that spot for life! The risk of inactivity is perhaps more subtle, but it is no less deadly. Just look around at some of the countries who have failed to act in the face of the coronavirus pandemic and you will see how deadly inaction can be. In his famous story about servants given sums of money, Jesus makes exactly this point. Three servants were entrusted with their master’s money in order to invest it on his behalf. Two of them invested the money in ventures which, no doubt, would have had some level of risk attached to them. The third servant, who did not have a good gauge on how to evaluate risk, gave in to fear and simply tried to preserve what he had to avoid any chance of loss. His boss was not impressed! He had expected any servant of his to show courage and good discernment, realising that risks are simply a reality of life, instead of trying to avoid risk altogether. The third servant discovered that failure to act in a risk-laden world was actually the greatest risk of all, and all he had was taken from him. May God give us the courage and creativity to truly live for him; may he give us discernment to know what risks aren’t worth it but also, what risks are! And may we be mindful of the deadly dangers of doing nothing.

In Him,
Murray