‘God himself does not give answers.
He gives himself.’
Frederick Buechner

I try to use a short reading from Listening to Your life as my final reading after Compline before going to bed. I like to mull the reading over as I brush my teeth and settle down to sleep, sleep on what I have read and reflect on it throughout the next day.

Today I remembered that I always thought being a witness, ‘doing’ mission, was about answering questions and giving answers that made sense. That is essentially what apologetics is all about. I am not knocking that.

I have noticed too, though, that in my waiting in spaces and being available for people I am seeing that just being present is sometimes what is needed.

I remembered this quote of John Taylors:

‘The Christian who stands in that world in the name of Christ, has nothing to offer unless he offers to be present, really and totally present, really and totally in the present. The failure of so many professional Christians has been that they are ‘not all there!’
Primal Vision SCM 1963 p.136

It seems to be that people are used to people not having time for each other. To share Christ’s love, to give a sense of the Kingdom here on earth we need to be really and totally present, which I think means giving time, giving space and giving self.