London’s Canary Warf is intimidating. Tall buildings and power-dressed people dominate the landscape. Michael invited me into this lion’s den. I felt as an alien might. The area has a sub-culture all its own. And where was the sky? The skyscrapers blocked most of the … sky.
However, Michael had a good purpose. He brought me in to lead a Bible discussion in his workplace. Every two weeks members of our church gather with their friends to talk about the spiritual amongst the temporal.
Our discussion (based on the rich fool, Luke 12.13-21) was insightful, stimulating and challenging. But what struck me most was the heartfelt dedication of these men and women to what they believe. It’s so easy to be swallowed by Mammon’s mass. To keep a clear spiritual ear in an acoustic reverberating to the sound of material success is quite an achievement.
How do they resist the tidal temptation to go with the flow? At least one reason is their continued commitment to care about the spiritual needs of their work colleagues – and not just their own. They ‘sing like a canary’ about their faith in a place not known for spirituality. The unseen spiritual hunger is visible to them, and it causes them to speak about the bread of life that can satiate the soul.
I left refreshed and reminded. Refreshed because I had seen faith in action, and reminded that my own spiritual health is enhanced by concern for the needs of people around me.
Malcolm Cox