OK, so perhaps not completely safe and free, but at least not encumbered. That was my thought as I have watched the release of the mask mandate that has been such a bother for so many months. It has been a relief to see stores relax the requirement for mask-wearing inside, and recently, even churches have released the mandate to require masks in worship services. People are once again starting to feel safe and free to worship.
It has been a difficult year. Church attendance and membership have decreased by dramatic amounts. Many faithful attendees may look around and say “Why?” How come people have lost faith and moved away from church? Even for this question, the answers are present in the Bible. This scenario has happened before. It is comparable to the times when Israel had drifted away from God, and God in His greatness helped them to see what they were missing and brought them back.
The Old Testament speaks of several occasions when the Hebrew nation was pressed into exile. In some ways, the world has been given a wilderness experience of exile. Dealing with a pandemic can be seen as a time of exile. We have had no real solution but to wander aimlessly on our own until we could effectively deal with an intense, uncaring virus that wanted to kill so many people.
Declining numbers
Our emergence from the desert of discontent has begun. The number of people vaccinated and/or now immune because they had the illness has reached a high enough threshold that we can return to our land of normal. It is not easy. We still have to figure out how to bring the economy back to normal, and not allow government bureaucracy to overwhelm our daily lives.
Fixing the decline
The people of Israel did not have an easy time either. An example story from the book of Ezra (chapters 9,10) described the problem of Israelites intermarrying with outsiders, against God’s wishes. For me, my focus today is to observe what the Israelites did in response. Yes, there was sin that led to the exile. And yes, there was disobedience in not listening to God. The Israelite response was sincere and organized. They proceeded from city to city, one household at a time, and dealt with it. It was a massive problem that was not cured overnight. It took months.
The end of covid masks and the re-population of our churches and membership is not going to happen overnight. What will happen is that God will touch hearts and minds, and people will be led back into worship.
One Difference
Safe and Free
In the New Testament, there is a strong discussion of fellowship. We discover that community and relationships are a big deal. 1 John 1:7 says : 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 
There is a huge benefit from being in fellowship (aka relationship) with other believers. Fellowship helps us remain under God’s guidance (walking in the light); in addition, the saving action of Jesus Christ helps to keep us in a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. It allows us to be safe and free, even though things around us may still be problematic.
