As I sat at my kitchen table this morning, Bible open, hot drink in hand before anyone else was awake, I heard something louder than I’ve heard from our kitchen before.

The birds singing.

It’s not an uncommon thing, and it’s something I’m often aware of, but it seemed louder than usual because of one simple factor. The very next thing I noticed was not the sound of something, but the lack of. For the first time in over three years, I could few, if no, cars on the M57. No background humdrum of traffic. No cars, lorries or motorbikes, as people decided to work from home or eagerly awaited an email from the boss to outline what to do.

We are living in unprecedented days. The decisions taken by our Government seem as weighty as war-time Britain in significance, impact and communication. As our Prime Minister speaks to the nation with updates each tea-time, it harks back to a by-gone era of families sat around a crackly wireless waiting for the next message and update.

The difference for us is – we don’t need to wait. In our viral culture of 24/7 rolling news, social media, WhatsApp, fake news and facebook – we are bombarded by background noise-news, just like the humdrum of the motorway traffic…

…the birds singing this morning were singing no louder than usual; the difference was, the white noise of traffic which my ears usually cancel out was gone, and so they seemed so much louder.

In days where people are fearful, uncertain of the future and wondering what to do, we must remember as followers of the Way of Jesus, that we are called to be people of hope.

Our Christian message is often quietened by the backdrop of agnostic or atheistic Britain, yet in times of uncertainty, when the backdrop of normality quietens, our voice of hope has the opportunity to ring out more loudly as people look for answers or reach out for something. I’ve heard many people getting worried, fearful and hyped up; speculating, assuming and criticising. In these days, we are called to be a people of hope, not hype. We’re not called to be critics, we’re not to be spectators to speculation or assimilated to assume – we are called to be hope bearers.

We have a message of hope. That God knows the plans He has for us… that God knows the end from the beginning… that God has weighed the dust of every mountain. This is the God we serve, and the God we represent.

When the white noise of life quietens, people will look up and listen out for our message. Are you living in hype and fear, or hope and peace? We are hope bearers, not hype bearers. We don’t need to get stressed, Paul says to Timothy about serving in difficult times, “but you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.” (2 Timothy 4 v 5). We have an opportunity to be calm, level headed, hope-filled peace-bearers. And when people ask why, 1 Peter 3 v 15, our previous verse of the year says “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”

Choose to be a hope bringer, not a hype burdener.