16 November

Today's the day when in 1961 boxer Frank Bruno was born. He rose to fame after turning professional in 1980 and winning 21 consecutive fights by knockout, and his career reached its climax in 1995 when he won the WBC world heavyweight championship. Bruno achieved great popularity with the public by cultivating his cuddly bear image and his friendship with commentator Harry Carpenter, not to mention his frequent appearances in pantomime. Sadly after his retirement from boxing his life took a turn for the worse, following the breakdown of his marriage, the suicide of his former trainer George Francis a serious mental health problem.

Frank Bruno’s life has probably had greater highs and lows than most of us experience. But for all of us life is an often unpredictable mixture of good times and bad times. The Bible gives us a great reassurance that God is with us in the best of times and in the worst of times. This is how God’s faithfulness is spelt out in Romans 8:

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?
…No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.