Logo

 

Banner Image:   Baptist-Times-banner-2000x370-
Template Mode:   Baptist Times
Icon
    Post     Tweet


What happens when the hero doesn’t pull it off? 


With 400 Wilko shops now set to shut, Jo Trickey discusses what people can do when they cannot trust their leaders to support or stand up for them

 

Wilko800 22This week Wilko went into administration. The family-run chain was offered a last-minute rescue deal by the billionaire owner of HMV, Doug Putnam, but then hopes were quickly dashed when rising associated costs took the deal off the table. 

With 400 stores now in the process of closing across the country, employees and their families find themselves facing uncertainty, worry, and disappointment. They feel let down. They feel that there are many who should have done more – the Wilkinson family, PwC (the administrators), and Doug Putnam, to name just three examples. 

We’re all living in uncertain times. We’ve all been let down by leaders. So, how do we find hope in when faced with constant uncertainty? How do we continue to put faith in leadership that seems to let us down time and again?

For me, the permacrisis encourages me to turn to the Bible. It’s full of stories of people who have been let down by leaders, of people living in uncertain times facing workplace insecurity and political instability. 

But it’s also full of stories of hope, of people sent by God to bring hope, speak out for truth and justice, and mould cultures that lead to holistic flourishing – because that is what God wants for each one of us. 

The whole Bible is the story of God’s commitment to us. So strong that he sent a perfect hero, Jesus, to pull off his perfect rescue plan.

It doesn’t make the uncertainty of the current situation go away, but it gives me reassurance that others can survive – and even flourish – in challenging times.

And it gives me someone trustworthy to look to every day. In this season, and in every season, that’s what I need. 

 

The Revd Jo Trickey is Church Advocate with The London Institute for Contemporary Christianity 



 
 
 



Do you have a view? Share your thoughts via our letters' page

 
 
 
Baptist Times, 16/09/2023
    Post     Tweet
Collaboration, and our worship of Jesus
Notes from the two keynote addresses from Dave Ferguson and Alex Harris at the first Everyone Everywhere national conference on 8 October
Israel-Palestine: I can’t keep up
Baptist church member David Nelson has travelled to Israel and the West Bank on three occasions in the past 24 months. He offers this reflection on events in the region
Dwelling in scripture
Anne Le Tissier outlines the practice of remaining in just one or a few Bible verses for an entire week or more, which is explored more fully in her new book 'Dwell – Inviting God’s Word to make a home in our lives, one day at a time'
Protests or race riots?
Justice enabler Wale Hudson Roberts reflects on this summer's race riots. In doing so, he asks: what role can Baptists Together play in addressing the voice of the far right, Islamophobia, and racism in church and society?
Should your faith rely solely on the Bible?
For many of us, the Bible is by far and away the book that has most influenced our lives. But as Baptists, Jesus is our number one authority, writes Chris Goswami
The Church, the far right, and the claim to Christianity
The far right has grown in prominence in recent years - with some cynically employing Christian-sounding language. Helen Paynter highlights the current context - and how the Church can respond
     The Baptist Times 
    Posted: 14/10/2024
    Posted: 02/10/2024
    Posted: 22/07/2024
    Posted: 07/05/2024
    Posted: 12/02/2024
    Posted: 22/12/2023
    Posted: 16/12/2023