I do feel sorry for Theresa May. By its very nature, politics is a bruising business, but having to cope with a sea change in the public mood and a surprisingly successful Jeremy Corbyn has been the very least of her problems recently.

Towering infernos, fundamentalist attacks from opposite sides of the spectrum, not to mention Brexit and a Tory party that seems to bent on tearing itself apart. Is it any wonder she looks more like a punch drunk parrot than a purring lioness?

But, I ask, can we do anything more substantial than feel sorry either for her or for those whose lives have been devastated over the past few weeks? That’s a question I’ve pondered long and hard as we’ve faced a tsunami of bad news threatening to engulf the nation.

There’s only one answer to that question. Of course we can. The crowds of ordinary people who flocked to Grenfell Tower and the Finsbury Park mosque are living proof that ordinary people can, and often do make the significant difference in the most awful of circumstances. We do ourselves a disservice when we forget this.

We can make a difference too by showing people we care. I will never forget John (not his real name). He told me that he had learned a very valuable lesson when his son was tragically killed in a road accident. Until then, John would not visit anyone who had lost a loved one because he felt he had nothing to say. But his son’s death had a revolutionary effect on his thinking. Through it he discovered that the people who helped him most often had nothing to say either. They simply sat, and often cried with him. “This experience has changed the way I think,” he told me. I’ve discovered how much it means to have friends who simply show you that they care.”

And we can build bridges too. I am currently seeking to do that with a group of Muslim leaders. I want to get to know how they are feeling and what we can do to promote tolerance and diversity in what is rapidly becoming a very illiberal society. But it doesn’t have to be people of a different faith. Wouldn’t it be brilliant if members of our local Labour and the Tory Parties devoted one day a month to saying good things about each other? Or what if they could spend a day together, cleaning up a beach or the streets of a local town? Why do we have to wait for a tragedy to pull us together?

Above all though, we can pray because history shows God can and does intervene, when people turn to Him for help. Winston Churchill understood this very clearly which is why he talked about ‘an Unseen Hand’ that interfered for our good.

Millions of Korean Christians believe God answers prayer and hundreds of them will be in the UK next week because they want to pray for us. In fact, some of them will be in Pembroke. If you want to meet them, if you want to pray with them, or even if you simply want them to pray for you, why not come along to St Mary’s Church any night from Monday until Friday (at 12 pm). I can assure you that you will not regret it.

Rob James is a Baptist Pastor broadcaster and writer who currently operates as a church and media consultant for the Evangelical Alliance Wales. He is available for preaching and teaching throughout Wales and can be contacted at [email protected]