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Good morning. I’m not a particular fan of Star Wars; however my wife has a soft-spot for the series and I confess to enjoying the latest film ‘The Force awakens’ when it came out recently. So I was tickled to discover that for many people across the world, today is Star Wars Day, as in ‘May the fourth be with you…’

Like many other cinema goers I found the film made for a great evening out, with some lively new characters, intriguing plot developments and, of course, some spectacular special effects. But it was more than mere entertainment; for while watching I was struck by how once again in Star Wars we’re encouraged to engage with the big moral issues (of good versus evil and of freedom against tyranny); and then to see how they’re worked out in the context of family relationships, in stories of personal crisis and decision, fall and redemption. In the development of these storylines, some critics find references to recent crises in world history while other see allusions to age-old themes drawn from mythology and chivalric lore. From my own perspective, it seems that these stories pick up many of the same themes we find also in the Biblical narratives, in the accounts of flawed characters being enabled to fulfil their destiny – and discovering in moments of crisis and decision that there is indeed a strength and divine presence to sustain them. ‘May the force be with you’ may not be a Trinitarian blessing; but it does point to the presence of the power of goodness in an inherently moral universe – and that’s not a bad place to start on a Wednesday morning.

Almighty God,

The Bible speaks of how all things in heaven and on earth are sustained by the power of your Spirit; may that same spirit strengthen each of us as we seek to follow in the way of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ, Amen.