The Quandary. 3 key questions !!

 So many opinions on the earth right now.

Thinking about the events of this week, which truthfully haven’t been that many, we are still locked down after all in Victoria, Australia, It occurred to me this morning that everyone one of us are subject to the opinions of others.

Let’s be real for a moment this morning.  

Who on the earth has complete knowledge ?  

Who is it that still lives and breathes and walks the earth like we do, who knows everything there is to know ?

The truth is, that some have a greater knowledge than others, because of experience and study and the like, but when it comes to something brand new, like Covid...that no one has experienced before, who then has complete knowledge and understanding, and especially around what God might be saying to us in the middle of this. ???

I have had a number of conversations this week around this and what various people are feeling and thinking, and of course I have my own thoughts.

Various thoughts range from God is sifting us, testing the church, the world, to God doesn’t care, to God is aware and doing nothing about it, and other thoughts include, it is just a normal fact of life on the planet and God has allowed it, permitted it.  There are most likely hundreds, if not thousands of other opinions and thoughts, but who is correct ?  

Who has total knowledge enough to prescribe to the rest of us that one specific thought is correct. 

And every other thought is not ?

It’s a bit of a mystery really. A Quandary.

Of course I have my own opinion, we all do. I am not going to try and explain my own opinion here, because of course, not everyone would agree, and thats when conflict emerges. 

I will say however, it is important that in the middle of whatever we are going through, that we be clear in our own heart and mind what it is we believe about God, what we believe for our own heart and why we believe it.

The world has seen these kinds of events in the past, its just that we have ourselves have not. 

God is still the same today, as He was yesterday and as He will be tomorrow. My bible tells me that.

He still loves His children, thats you and me. My Bible tells me that as well.

Does He want us to re think how we do church ? Yes.... but then He has been asking us that question for a long time, and some have already modified church to reflect that, its just that now in Covid, we are looking at that more seriously or intentionally.

Does God want us to pray more ?  Yes... He has been asking us to do that for the whole time, but we have been slow to listen and act, so busy doing so many other things. It’s just that now we are in slow mode. Has it changed anything in us ?  For some it has...but I suspect for most, no change at all.

Does God want us to be more intentional about His community and How we do that ? YES... its called discipleship and He asked us to do that right from the very beginning. Can we still do that in lockdown ? YES... its called Zoom.  But will we do that ? 

Or will we continue to search after programs and activities rather than lifestyle change ?   

Whatever your opinion about the sovereignty of God in the middle of this COVID CRISIS, lets be clear of a few things... some things haven’t changed at all.

Yes we can’t do some of the normal things we used to do.

But right now we can do so many new things and re claim a few of the old ways of the Lord.

It all comes down to what you will allow in your life and what you will reject from your life.

Last night, we had dinner on line with some good friends. We then played scattergories online in zoom, it was fun...we laughed, chatted, ate, and 2 hours ZOOMED past very quickly.  It was good for us as our little family... and hopefully good for our friends.  But it lifted our spirit. It was “un natural” at first.... but it was nevertheless good.

So, can you still pray together ?  YES

Can you disciple others ?  YES

Can you still worship ? YES

Can you still have church ? YES

the real question is... will you ? 

The head or the tail ?

I was reading in the news somewhere yesterday that we could be living our lives like this, for the next couple of years.

Masks on wherever you go.

The new normal some are saying.  For us in Victoria Australia we are in the second week of a 6 week lockdown.  No traveling further than 5kms from home, curfew after 8pm at night, 1 hour out for exercise etc each day.... not easy.  

But what if this is our new normal ?  

What if for the next few years this is just how it needs to be to stay alive ?  

With our death rate rising each day it seems, and the cases reported higher than everywhere else in our country, its not the time to be complacent and ignore the warnings and guidance by government.

Some think its just a conspiracy, others are so fearful they can barely do anything anymore, and yet the threat is real, just ask those families planning funerals for their loved ones these days.

So what would you do if this is our new normal. ?

Will you survive ? Will you adapt ? Will you shrink back ? 

I need to answer those questions for myself, and I am not going to try and answer them for you. But our world has changed in 2020 and the way forward isn't as easy as it used to be.

I was thinking this morning, the ones who will win and flourish in this new environment will be the ones who adapt and find their niche in the middle of new methods and expectations. 

The ones who do business differently, work differently, live differently, create new habits and lose old thinking.

There is no point going into a new world with old world thinking. 

We have seen people try to do that for years and they just flounder. And eventually are stifled and worked around, sideswiped.

We need to take the best from the past, adapt it, modify it and embed it into the new normal so that we can also flourish. 

Whether that be church, work, sport, social life, home life or whatever it is.  

We may never be able to go back to the old normal. I am not even sure we will want to.

Staying on top is all about critical thinking and attitude. 

It’s about a decision to not fall to the bottom. 

It’s about a choice to be adaptable within yourself. 

To be always ready to change and modify your own mindset and actions to stay ahead of the game.

I see it around me, people who hang on to the past. a past that has gone and may never be able to return. People who say things like ...” Back in my day, or back in the old days, we used to...”  we may never be able to do that.

Were the old days that good really ? 

I think back to my younger days and some of my choices and decisions I wish I could change, but I don’t want to go back there.... I want to live out the rest of my life somehow making a difference and helping others ....especially to find Jesus.  I never actually wanted to do that in my early days.

So staying on top ?  Is a choice ?  

I think so. It’s a choice to say I am not going to live on the bottom, I am not going to wallow around in self pity and defeat.

I am going to do something each day to work my way to the top.... not at the expense of others, but rather alongside others who are also wanting to live at the top.

The top of behavior.

The top of faith.

The top of prayer

The top of love.

The top of grace.

The top of care for others.

The top of self care and self confidence.

The top of relationship with each other and with Jesus.

Who in their right mind would choose the bottom of any of those ?

There is the verse in the Bible which speaks about being the head and not the tail.  

Deuteronomy 28:13 

New International Version

The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom.

..................................................

For me...thats what I want for me life...  think about that for a moment.  the head makes decisions to wag the tail. (of a dog) I don't want to be the tail, it’s the smelly end ... lol.

The world could easily be on track to never return to what we used to be.  It’s not alarmist, its potentially a new reality. How you live in that will be a head  and heart decision.  

You can rise above it, seriously you can. 

You can be on top.

It’s all a matter of a choice each and every day.

Right now - a Rant ? Vent ? Challenge ? Hmmmmmm.

It has been said, that Victoria has some of the strictest lockdown rules right now for this crazy virus.

There have been a couple of times where anxiety has been heightened in me. Today we were informed of the most cases and deaths in 24 hours so far.  Seriously tough times.  Yes, not as bad as some other countries, but nevertheless serious enough to cause us some struggle in Australia.

So how are you going with the anxiety ? 

It isn’t easy.....let’s not kid ourselves that it is.  

One of the things I have missed so much is the hugs of my grandson and my daughter, her husband not much of a hugger...lol, nevertheless I am missing them.

I was thinking about it this morning, about how things have changed and what we can and cant do right now.

It’s been 5 months for us in Victoria and no sign of it easing up any time soon.

I miss gathering in one place for worship with like minded people who love Jesus.

I miss catching up face to face over a meal or coffee with fellow leaders.

I miss the coffees at my favorite cafe.

I miss going to the movies.

I miss some of my favorite places.

I miss my family.

But I would rather miss all of them than see any of my family and friends sick with the crazy virus.

Have you become something that has surprised you, about yourself, during the lockdown ? Have you found something new inside yourself during this time ?

For me.....

I have become more aware of my own mortality, and my fragility.... that if I got sick it would most likely finish me off.  I have also become aware of what I need around me and what I don't need.

Life is short and precarious and we are all faced with this...no person is not faced with the same issues, the difference we each have is how we face it. Or how we handle it.

I want to ask you, as I ask myself, are you happy about who you are and what you see inside yourself ?

These times of lockdown can cause a lot of self evaluation and taking stock of who we each actually are at the depth of our inner being. That isn't a bad thing, it can be good for us and may be what God is asking of us in this time.  Check ourselves out, get rid off what isn't good or right and strengthen what is good so that it becomes even better.

A few months back we asked the question, what will you stop, keep and/or change in your church when we get to go back.  Still great questions... but what about you as an individual Christ follower ?

What can you prune off your life to make yourself more fruitful in other ways in your life. ?

Right now is a great time to be doing that.

Some of my friends have lost their way when it comes to faith and belief in Jesus Christ. It isn't a judgement by me, just an observation....  today is not the time to forget about Jesus and His claim on our lives, right now is the best time to strengthen that relationship with Jesus. 

This world is throwing up a whole pile of confusion and distraction, and we can all be guilty of being distracted away from Jesus. 

 But now is the time to draw closer to Him.

Join a prayer group online, a bible study, push deeper towards Him, don't run away from Him, it is way easier to give up than to push in. But life is precarious... so remember that in this life we were born to live with HIM and for HIM and to make a difference to the world.

It’s not really a rant, neither is it a vent really... but maybe a challenge to do some soul searching and to allow some soul surgery to get it real for Jesus and you.

Church may have chewed you up and spat you out, it can do that at times.... but Jesus never does that. Jesus is rock solid ...faithful, forgiving, loving, gracious and merciful and desires us to live out our lives for Him.   

I hear His words to the woman caught in sin, “do you see any who condemn you ? Well neither do I, now go and sin no more... “

Right now is the perfect time to make peace with Jesus and to trust him with your life once again.

Some thoughts on this Wednesday afternoon.