George Michael

Photo by Oscar Söderlund on Unsplash

This week, over two-years after the death of the late George Michael, the sale of his art collection raised £11.3 million for causes he supported. It’s quite amazing to think that even after death, someone can still be having a very real and positive impact on the lives of others.

I think this thought must have lodged somewhere in my mind as when I sat down to write a sermon about listening to others on Tuesday, I was reminded of George Michael’s second solo album Listen Without Prejudice. What a great title. Just what I needed to inspire the title for my sermon. The concept of listening to someone without the prejudice of our previous experience or what we think we might know of them was such a powerful concept.

When someone really listens to us it has such power to unlock and heal our emotions. Listening to someone with no agenda, no pre-decided course of action, no pre-judgement about the person or what they say, allows us to treat the person with genuine respect. It gives them real freedom.

As I started to mull it over, I thought I’d listen to the album again. It starts with an awe inspiring social commentary, Praying for Time, which is where the title of today’s though has come from. These are the days of the beggars and the choosers … this is the year of the hungry man … The rich declare themselves poor. The song could have been written today commentating on the growing economic inequality, the increasing use of foodbanks and the misery this brings to the lives of so many.

And then, the lyric hit me; And the wounded skies above, say it’s much, much too late. Well, maybe we should all be praying for time. Wounded skies? Yes, not only in the sense of the environment, but also the sense that we share the same sky, the same earth. We live in a community which is damaged and hurting. Further, it also applied to us as individuals. How often does it feel our environment, the world in which we live our day-to-day live is wounded? For many of us, it may feel our skies are wounded and it’s too late for anything to change. This was certainly my experience when suffering in the pits of depression.

Yet there is hope. Hanging on to hope when there is no hope to speak of. Hang in there. All might seem beyond redemption, but with time things can, and often do, change. As the song ends and the second song on the album begins, we are encouraged: I won’t let you down. I will not give you up. The uplifting opening lyrics of Freedom! So, have some faith in yourself this week. With time, you don’t know where life might take you.

Looking for freedom from the wounded skies? Why not consider booking an appointment with the author, Dr Dave Wood of Realign Coaching via Keia.