Since Europe reached agreement on the Agency Workers Directive in October 2008, considerable flexibility has been left to individual Member States as to how they interpret and apply its framework of legal protection for agency workers by 5 December ...

and underlining sharp differences in approach between wealthy societies such as the United States and Europe.

The Gauteng Department of Health announced on Saturday that total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the province as at May 8 sits at 1851, with 1247 recoveries and 18 deaths.

Many families have had to adjust to new routines with the extension of the lockdown. Nathan Adams writes about life in Cape homes in a time of crisis

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize says 3 953 South Africans have now recovered from the Covid-19 virus, which has claimed the lives of more than 180 people in the country so far.

The near-term economic fallout of the pandemic in the country was expected to be severe.

Safety preparations for public service employees to return to work under the Covid-19 level four regulations should have been made long before workers were recalled for duty, the Public Servants Association said on Saturday.

More than 1600 people have now recovered from the Covid-19 in the Western Cape, the provincial government said on Saturday.

At least 500 000 people took advantage of the inter-province travel window period and returned to Gauteng by Thursday, said premier David Makhura.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize on Saturday descended on the Western Cape as pressure mounted on the national government to intervene in the coastal province.

The tally of coronavirus (Covid-19) cases reported by 53 African Union (AU) members states by Saturday stood at 57 746 confirmed cases; and 2 151 deaths.

Supermoms who have been on the front line since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic said passion for their jobs had sustained them during difficult demanding times.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).

God entrusts comfort to us, often through trials, so that we may comfort others.

The nation of Ireland is nicknamed the “Emerald Isle” for good reason—it contains some of the greenest countryside of any location on earth. In visiting there I have noticed that abundant mist and fog, which often shroud the rolling landscape, help produce the rich green grass and trees. That phenomenon is much like the Christian life. Many times when our life is obscured by the sufferings and sorrows of trials, it has a refreshing beauty of soul that is not always readily seen. As the apostle Paul’s life demonstrates, sensitive and merciful hearts are the products of great trials.

Difficulties beset us so that God might bestow much comfort on us. But such comfort is not merely for our own benefit. The Lord entrusts His comfort to us that we might share it with others, as verse 4 of today’s passage indicates. And He comforts us in direct proportion to the number of trials we endure, which means the more we suffer, the more God comforts us; and the more He comforts us, the more we can comfort others who are hurting.

When we do experience real comfort in the wake of a trial, perhaps the most precious result is the sense of Christian partnership we feel. If God’s comfort helps us to comfort others, then it’s clear that other believers are positively affected by what we learn from our trials. The entire process lifts us beyond ourselves and shows us that as part of a local fellowship or the greater Body of Christ we are not alone and do not have to undergo various trials in a vacuum.

The comfort we receive and the sense of partnership that results is a great incentive for any of us to be encouraged through trials and sufferings, knowing that such experiences enable us to minister as integral parts of the Body of Christ (see 1 Cor. 12:26; 2 Cor. 1:6-7).

Suggestions for Prayer

Thank God for His unlimited supply of comfort.

For Further Study

Read Isaiah 40:1; 49:13; 51:3; 61:2. What promise does each verse have in common?

From Strength for Today by John MacArthur Copyright © 1997. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a division of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.com.

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