by Lyn Lumanlan-Elloso
Return to Me
For a while, New Zealand has been COVID-free as we enjoy the freedom to gather and do whatever we want without restrictions while the rest of the world grapples with the surging numbers of cases and deaths.
Not so long ago, we gathered at the Auckland marina with throngs of people watching the America’s Cup race without social distancing. People shopped until they dropped; bars and restaurants operated with drunken louts and trips and holidays around the country were scheduled with normalcy.
On August 18, NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that an Alert Level 4 lockdown will take place by midnight after a man tested positive with the COVID Delta variant. Soon, the virus dispersed very quickly in the community and the rising numbers became alarming. The government became confident that it can stamp it out again and we can go back to zero cases like it did before. But the delta variant is tenacious and it persisted week after week.
Like the rest of the world, it finally dawned on us that we are now experiencing the realities of the pandemic. Businesses are closing down; people are losing jobs; prices of basic commodities are increasing by the week; and, families have become more vulnerable to domestic abuses due to the lockdown.
People all over the world have grown so weary and began questioning their faith. With churches unable to gather their flock in person, online services have become the new norm. However, despite this, fear has gripped everyone’s mind as we venture into the unknown on a daily basis. Levels of loneliness, depression, harmful alcohol/drug use and self-harm or suicidal behavior have increased exponentially.
A Christian friend asks how can you tell unbelievers about God when they continue to wrestle with life’s shakedowns? How indeed? How can you tell about the miracles written in the Bible when there are short of miracles happening in this day and age? Are they just historical events for story-telling or do they still have any significance in our perpetual sufferings? Does God still manifest His miracles today? These are questions posed by many in the midst of difficulties and unbelief.
In my quest to answer the questions, I have searched throughout the Bible of accounts where God’s people felt abandoned by His silence. The Book of Exodus is one great example of trials and tribulations.
Did you know that the length of time that the Israelites lived in Egypt was about 430 years?
They were probably enslaved by the Egyptians for hundreds of years. Because they grew in number, the Pharaoh and the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites. They have embittered their lives with harsh labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields. However, Israel’s mistreatment by the Egyptians provide the background and impetus for their redemption. God hears the cry of his people and does something about it.
The people had to make a choice: whether to stay in the situation they have been accustomed to, or live in the dessert for 40 years on blind faith. God could have made their lives simple by transporting them straight to the promised land without having to suffer battles, starvation, illnesses and the harsh weather. He didn’t. But despite these dire circumstances, He provide for them.
Getting to the promised land took time. God may have wanted them to learn some lessons along the way about trusting Him, fighting for them and providing for their daily needs. He also wanted to cleanse them of their idolatry and usual practices by isolating them from the ways of the world. This was the only way He could purify His people so their hearts would return to Him.
Throughout history, many calamities, pandemic, wars — have devastated human lives. God permits these things to happen. Each generation is raised up for a purpose. We should therefore align ourselves with God and understand how He works so that we can conquer the enemy. Our generation needs to accomplish the purposes He has for us during our lifetime.
COVID-19 has disrupted our world and put a halt in our normal routines. Lives have been slowed down considerably and many of us experience this slowing down as something uncomfortable with the change of lifestyles. Perhaps we need to take time to pause into this crazy world, a period of resting and revival of our faith.
The doors of retail stores, restaurants, movie houses are closed. Many countries have grown quieter in this inactivity which can be unsettling for us, as we used to enjoy the constant noise and partying. Let us embrace the silence and endeavor to listen more attentively to the voice that has been calling us to return to Him. Let us allow this opportunity and motivation to let love abound all the more. What is certain above all else in this time of chaos is that nothing can separate us from the love of God.
This long hiatus may finally pave the way for us to hear God as we have been distracted by so many things. Whether or not we use the challenges for the better is somewhat dependent on our ability to re-evaluate our lives and decide what matters most. Just like the Israelites greatest testing in the dessert, so must we learn to trust God in the midst of crisis.
We do not need to see the parting of the Red Sea or manna falling from heaven to believe in miracles. We do not need to see Jesus multiplying the loaves of bread and fishes to feed the masses or bring people back to life to believe in miracles. If we could collect all the authentic stories all over the world by the missionaries and the saints from different cultures, there are millions of encounters by Christians and we would be stunned by the miracles happening today.
I believe that the greatest miracle today is the human conversion that brings eternal life in Jesus Christ.
Return to me, says the Lord of Host.
