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Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 states:
"To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace".
2020 and 2021 were challenging times to live through, to say the least. At the time of writing this article, 2022 has just begun and many wonder will it be more of the same or will we see much worse? We are continuing on in the time of weeping and mourning, refraining from embracing, planting, preparing, and holding fast. 2022 arrived while some of us slept through the midnight fireworks and frivolities as they do not hold any interest for us nor are they part of God's annual festivals to keep. My body clock said it was time to sleep hours beforehand in order to get up early and refreshed on the first day of January, for which I did. Nothing like a good night's sleep in order to function well the next day. King Solomon, who wrote Ecclesiastes under divine inspiration from God, was right -- there is indeed a time for everything, and he ought to know as he was the wisest man to ever live, up until the time Jesus was born as a human (1 Kings 4:29-34; 10:23-24).
Did we ever imagine there would be a sustained time to refrain from embracing such as we are going through right now due to COVID-19? During our Christian lives we had been able to embrace each week amongst our brethren as we warmly greet one another with Sabbath tidings and had not really given it a second thought. To have this frowned upon and declared by governmental authorities to be unacceptable has been very strange, initially difficult to get used to, and yet we have had to accept it on some level after almost 2 years. Although we may find it odd we obey what God has allowed if it does not go against His laws. This is the key principle to keep in mind and follow as God's laws override anything from mankind. Man's laws are a mixture of good such as our road rules; and not so good such as what the current Chief Medical Officers (CMOs) have in place to supposedly keep everyone safe here in Australia -- not working out too well at all sadly.
Examples of large sporting arenas able to hold around 25,000 or more people to watch the cricket, footy, or tennis have recently declared only the double "vaxxed" are allowed entry to attend thinking they will be safer than having the "unvaxxed" among the spectators. Attendees were asked their opinion on this with one lady on national TV clearly stating that she would not feel safe if an "unvaxxed" person was sitting next to her. Incredible but true! This is how so many are thinking these days and have not an inkling or shred of an idea of what is wrong with their rationale. God's health laws and principles are the exact opposite of what we see going on around us. Masking healthy people will have dire health consequences -- there is no escaping this. Furthermore, quarantining healthy people will have consequences not only physically but also mentally especially for the extroverts. More than ever before it matters that we must use wise discernment amongst all this confusion, fear and panic. This takes forethought and skill in order to obey God and not upset those in our communities for this is also a time to put Matthew 10:16 into practice as we stay close to God.
The time to apply Godly wisdom is always. For these times we do this by getting outdoors to the beach, countryside, or to local parks and gardens for sunshine, fresh air and exercise as this is healthy and also helps with maintaining our immune system. According to Dr. Maggie Luther ND (Naturopathic Doctor) approximately 70% of our immune system lives in our digestive tract ("The Everything Guide to Adrenal Fatigue", 2015, p. 126) therefore nutrition with clean whole foods organically grown is best along with moderate, sustainable exercise. Beaches and parks have plenty of space to spread out in while swimming, walking along the sand, or hiking along a tree studded trail. Best to consider when to go and where to go to avoid crowded places and enjoy the peace and quiet of solitude. Christ was well known for His wilderness connections between Himself and His Father throughout the gospels as He went to private places up in the hills and mountains (Luke 5:16, Matthew 14:23, Mark 1:35).
Crowded spaces are the opposite of solitude. Some of us just tolerated crowds at the best of times when we were younger such as when going to The Royal Adelaide or Royal Melbourne Show where it was not unusual for young children to get lost. Our parents carefully ensured we knew where to go if we were separated from them and thankfully we never needed to go to the red brick building near the toilets to be claimed. This was a very scary scenario to contemplate and avoid at all costs to youngsters still in single digits. I am so thankful my parents emphasized healthy fear of how to stay safe in noisy, crowded environments and I can still remember hearing children's names announced over the loudspeakers and wondered whether these lost children would ever see their parents again. Likewise, our Father promotes healthy fear within us in order to escape danger. Crowds are definitely not for me as it feels claustrophobic, hemmed in, leaving me anxious and stressed. During these times of social distancing the most annoying thing is when people come up close behind you quietly without being aware that they are almost upon you. Is this a thing? That so many do this without thinking -- or maybe it doesn't count to social distance unless face to face. Get real!
As we age we invariably find that we do not put up with things that are not prudent and thankfully our household has never liked large crowds at any sporting events or in various shopping malls. Shopping for us is pretty much get in, get what you need, and then get out on a weekly basis. We watch the growing infected case numbers daily via our screens to keep up as to what is going on in our local community, and further afield around the country and overseas. It is no surprise as to what we are seeing -- we knew this was going to happen as we were warned before borders opened. Prior to this just a couple of months ago during November 2021 we had a few outings to places we enjoyed with family such as restaurants and made some memories for the future such as now when venues have been refusing entry to the unjabbed. What a sorry state of affairs -- people are segregated and separated largely due to fear, propaganda, and reinforcement of lies. The insanity and blind ignorance is quite unbelievable unless one lives through these things and experiences them first-hand.
In this valuable time of preparation we are reading, studying, filling our vessels with God's Holy Spirit, represented in the Bible by oil in order to be ready as wise virgins (Matthew 25:1-4). There is no time to waste. Daily we glean and go to our Father in prayer for guidance as we develop character with good fruit. This week a news item from New Zealand revealed the persecution of a minister and his family because they remain unjabbed and outspoken about it. This occurred on New Year's Eve and in a country we consider one of our "next door neighbours". Incredible but true. Most people think we should "fly under the radar" as it were when things become challenging. What do you think? The best question you can ask here is "What does God think?" Best to talk to God and seek out from scripture what to do in troubling times. Again, we must use wisdom and be respectful with our answers yet remain faithful and true. There is a time to keep silence and a time to speak as Ecclesiastes 3:7 reveals. Knowing the difference is part of wise discernment given by God's Holy Spirit. It is up to the individual to choose whether they allow God's Spirit to lead them and follow. What's next, so many are thinking.
Using COVID to their advantage (those in power) it will be much easier to control church groups with minimal numbers of attendance. This we have seen over the last 22 months -- some more than others depending on where one lives -- our neighbouring Victorians suffered the most. Staying at home on the Sabbath week after week like we were told to do during 2020 was very depressing for me. It is really positive and quite encouraging to see brethren making a concerted effort to find creative ways to meet together in small groups by offering hospitality within their own homes or outdoors to worship God on the Sabbath. This is a great memory for me when initially called with no brethren to congregate with for several weeks until God provided a family from overseas to settle here in Adelaide. Eagerly, we shared in getting together each Sabbath alternating from week to week between our modest places of residence, however humble they were. Keeping the Sabbath by myself was interesting and a steep learning curve -- I knew of no other way until God showed me otherwise. In my heart and mind it was good enough until the benefit of fellowshipping was revealed. The contrast was huge and I am very grateful for the benefit of hindsight to consider the obvious differences. God was teaching me how to keep the Sabbath the very first week of learning about His holy time. Will 2022 be the year when we can no longer attend live services unless jabbed? Perhaps we will have further separation with the jabbed able to attend a live service, while those of us unjabbed will not have this right. May it not be so! Currently we live in a time of uncertainty and changes are made to rules even on a daily basis like shifting sands. Who can keep up?
Our focus must be resolute as we live one day at a time until Christ returns. Keep things simple. Patience, perseverance and having a strong focus on the soon coming Kingdom of God will ensure we get there. God has revealed to those of us who have and are led by His Spirit what will transpire in the coming times of judgement (Amos 3:7, John 15:15). For those future times it will be a time to hide as noticed in scripture from Isaiah 26:20-21 "Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past. For behold, the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; The earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain". Until then we live as God intended for us to live -- without fear, with wisdom to do the best we can as we are able, and through being strengthened in His Word and by His Word.