Scripture presents us with the possibility of change. We’re given the fruit of the Spirit by Him, fruit that bears witness to His character and purpose. Yet, we all experience resistance to effective change in the shape of our perception, habits, and attitudes. In a nation obsessed with obesity, weight offers a useful illustration.

Change requires choices, which then present challenges. Here we face the reality of sacrifice in time and energy to press on with everyday life. Most startup businesses are undercapitalised. The product is good and viable but cashflow runs out before sufficient revenue is secured for survival and profitability.

Change demands choices which give insight into our Christian understanding, and which then shape our discipleship. We can struggle with personal choices, preferring to critique those of others, easier to point the finger.

Change is feared because it interrupts our familiar routines and the comfort they give us. Neuroscience tells us that change offers

Context changes regularly but it doesn’t mean we lose our confidence and hope. It demands changes in our perceptions. Ageing is something society is slowly coming to terms with, with many lessons learned and truths gathered over the years. We need never stop becoming more of who God created us to be, despite physical and mental limitations.

Revelation, or encountering God, is to fill our hearts with joy, placing all our struggles in perspective. Difficult to accomplish, revelation alone presents us with the way forward. If only it were delivered in a single package, like a software patch.

Communion isn’t a casual event. This may be because of anxiety that a formal breaking of bread might reinforce a Catholic view of the real presence, a view that changed during the Protestant Reformation. However, breaking bread together was introduced by Jesus. There’s the fellowship meal, such as the feeding of the five thousand, and pursued by the early Christians as they broke bread together in their homes.

Every journey has a destination, even if it’s provisional with a fresh start ahead. Our life journey will enjoy many destinations, many chosen but some enforced on us. Sometimes we will go a good distance in the wrong direction as the only way to discover something about ourselves and our true destination.

The despondent disciples had the reports that Jesus was alive, not only from the women, but also confirmed by those who rushed off to check this unusual report. However, knowledge is of little use if we don’t know what to do with it.

Caravaggio’s ‘Supper at Emmaus’* is a favourite painting. The dramatic moment when two disciples recognise the risen Christ breaking bread. Their walk offers a metaphor for Christian life.** Two disheartened disciples, believing their hopes dashed, set off home. Dashed hopes can lead to despondency; literally to give up one’s soul. The Church Fathers prayed for God’s deliverance from despondency, recognising that it dilutes enthusiasm and drains energy.