Making the most of the lockdown

TRUTH FOR TODAY

Jun Malazo

Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast."  (Psalm 57:1)

It is most likely that all of you are being affected at some degree by the latest pandemic of the COVID-19.  As governments all over the world lock down their borders and impose community quarantines, there seems to be a fear growing among people everywhere in the world.  On March 15, our president declared a lockdown in our capital city of Manila.  Not long after, as the virus infections continued to escalate, an enhanced community quarantine was declared all throughout Luzon. 

During the lockdown, people are reacting in different ways.  Some may be looking at this whole situation as an overreaction to a simple problem that causes so many inconveniences, while others react in fear and see the lockdown as a precursor to some apocalyptic worldwide dilemma. 

Your reaction may be dependent on your present situation or the place you live, as some areas are faring better than others.  Whatever reaction people may have, we all have one thing in common.  Being locked down because of the enhanced community quarantine means that we have more time to ourselves now than a few weeks ago.

What you do with the extra time because of your inability to perform your normal daily routines is definitely up to your own discretion.  However, we must be reminded that how we spend the next few weeks or even months will have impact on our state of being throughout the lockdown. 

There are ways to make the most of the time that we have during the lockdown.  The time could be used for reassessing our lives.  Life about a month ago for most people was going at lightning speed.  If you are like most people, there were perhaps some areas of your life that you felt needed reevaluation but time was just not there to even begin such an endeavor.  The time during the lockdown is an ideal time to evaluate our lives and see areas where improvement is much needed. 

While there are many practical areas of our lives that we can discuss, I want to focus our attention on the spiritual level.  It is probably one of the most neglected areas in our lives.  Please understand that I am not saying the other areas of our lives are any less important.  I just believe that when our greatest need is met (which is spiritual), everything else will fall into place. 

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First, we can make the most of the lockdown by refocusing our lives.  The busyness of life tends to keep us out of focus as we juggle so many areas of life all at once.  Balancing family and career as well as many other extracurricular activities in our timetable is a real challenge that often leads to an out-of-focus life.  As we refocus our lives to the right balance and order we will often find the real value of each area.  There are many areas of life that need refocusing from time to time.

Relationships are important matters in life.  Without them, life would seem dull and pointless.  We are made to be social beings.  But the most important relationship we can ever have is a relationship with God.  If you claim to be a Christian, your relationship with God should be of the utmost importance to you.  Notice what the Apostle Paul said concerning his desire for a relationship with God:

"That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;"  (Philippians 3:10)

"Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,"  (Philippians. 3:8)

The Apostle Paul’s priority in life was to develop his relationship with God.  We have a God that longs and waits for us to have fellowship with Him.  The Bible describes our God, not as an impersonal Being, but a very personal God that knows our feelings and cares for our needs.

May I ask you today, how is your relationship with God?  Do you spend time with Him through prayer and reading your Bible?  Prior to the lockdown, how much time did you spend serving God and attending your local church?

The greatest lesson that we can learn from this pandemic and the uncertain future that lies ahead of us is how much we need God.  Has fear struck you in the last few days?  Has the uncertainty of the future given you anxiety?  I just want to encourage you today that God is in control of everything.  David said, “My times are in thy hands…” (Psalm 31).

Has your career, job, or business been taken you away from you?  Perhaps it was a tragic event in your life that took your heart away from the things of God, or it could be that people in church have disappointed you at one point in your life.  Maybe it is a sin you are struggling with as an addiction that keeps you away from God.  My friend, it is time to get back.  God is waiting.

“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.’’  (Revelations 3:20)

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Secondly, we can make the most of our time of lockdown in retrospection.  With guidelines for the lockdown changing everyday and becoming more inconvenient for most of us, there are many things that limit us from doing our normal routines.  You may feel restricted and unable to adjust to the new guidelines.  It is easy to complain about how hard things are, but whatever it is that you are struggling with, there are still some things we can be thankful for.

God never wants us to dwell in the past.  Paul said, “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”  But He doesn’t want us forget His goodness to us in the past.  It is easy to complain about our present condition, but if we look back at the blessings of God in the past, it brings comfort to us.  It gives us the assurance that the God who has been faithful in the past is also faithful in the present. 

As we look back in retrospection we will find that God has been faithful to us.  Before we came to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, we were lost in sin.  We were struggling and had no hope for the future.  But God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to be the ultimate sacrifice for our sins so that you and I could have hope for eternity.

As we spend each moment of the lockdown we must take time in retrospection of God’s goodness in our lives.  Looking at the past makes us thankful for what we have today.  Everyone has different things in their lives that they can be thankful for.

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Lastly, we can make the most of this lockdown by rebuilding.  As you study the Bible, you’ll find that every time there was a great moving of God in the midst of people there was a great time of calamity or need.  For example, when Moses was born, things were not easy for his parents and the rest of the Hebrew population in Egypt.

The story Moses is a fascinating story of God’s intervention in the most difficult situation.  It was no accident the Pharaoh’s daughter just happened to be there when the ark of bulrushes that Moses’ mother made for him passed by.  God used Moses later to redeem His people from the bondage of Egypt.

We never know how God will use the current events in the world for His glory.  But I believe that this could be a great setting for a spiritual revival in our town.  Would it not be great that after the lockdown people would a have hunger for God—that people would seek God of the Bible?  My friend, this is my prayer—a revival in Sagada. 

But revival starts within the hearts of believers.  People getting saved and turning to God is only the by-product of revival.  But believers who get their hearts and lives right with God are the causing agent for true revival.

"If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."  (2 Chronicles 7:14)

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In closing, I believe that God is looking for Bible-believing Christians today to individually seek God.  We must get our lives right with God and pray and seek God’s face.  What our world needs is God’s intervention.  What our nation needs is for people who will be serious enough about their Christianity to pray and ask God to heal our land.