With the Lord as our light and our salvation we have very little reason for fear of anyone or anything. Yet even in the midst of Easter joy we may feel the light diminished and our way unsure. The Lord may seem at times remote: distant and removed from us. Whenever the shadows deepen and our way becomes unclear we do well to wait for the Lord to show us the way. God is never in a hurry and a sense of urgency almost always is derived from our desires and ambitions.

Perhaps God has withdrawn from us (or we have withdrawn from the path of God) because we are trying to impose our will or understanding upon a situation rather than seeking to grow in knowledge, understanding and wisdom of what God wills and of God's heart. Jesus removes himself from the midst of the people because while their desire for him to be their king is a good one, it is misguided because it is fuelled by their desire for full bellies and physical healing and the thrill of signs and wonders instead of an awareness of the nearness of God's reign and the way of love through service to others that Jesus is revealing. Perhaps our current endeavour is off-track and we are at odds with God. The "Gamaliel Principle" might suggest that the absence of God means that our current project is of human origin and human vision and doomed to fail.