A Nevispages weekly feature by Curtis Morton Sr
The way I see it, God expects us to obey the laws of the land, once they are not contravening his laws.
So, in my estimation, once the laws of the land are not conflicting with God’s stated and well-established laws, then we should, as citizens, seek to abide by them.
Now, I have read many stories; watched many documentaries; watched many movies, based on real life stories and it grieves my heart how Christians in other parts of the world, are placed in stressful and life-threatening situations, just because of their faith in God and their willingness to serve and worship him.
In those situations, the laws of the state, go contrariwise to God’s established laws and I admire the determination of those stalwarts, who purpose in their hearts, that come what may, they will continue to worship and serve their God.
Looking at it from what we may consider to be ‘our safe bubble,’ we may tend to get complacent and just close our eyes to the plight of others, thinking to ourselves, that such situations will never happen here, because ‘we live in a democracy.’
Well, wait!
Satan may not be omnipresent like God is, but he certainly has his tentacles outstretched, right across the entire world and as sure as Jesus is set to come soon, OUR TIME WILL COME.
Well I newa!
Now, that we are existing, during the time of the CALM BEFORE THE STORM, we should utilize these precious moments to practise for the critical and testing times ahead.
We should focus on studying God’s word and try by his grace to live more committed lives, because if we are weak now, we won’t automatically grow strong, during a time of real test to our faith.
On the other hand, once the laws of the land are not in conflict with God’s laws and especially as we are in a state of emergency, faced with the corona threat when governments are seeking to ensure that their general populations are safe and healthy, I truly believe that we should seek to adhere to the established protocols, as far as it is humanly possible.
Now mark you, yes, I agree that some of the rules put in place, may appear nonsensical and defy all logic, but remember that the guiding powers that be, are still testing the waters. This is the first time that we have been faced with a threat of this magnitude and they won’t get everything right from the get go and so we are in that phase of TRIAL AND ERROR and learning as we go.
In the meantime, we as citizens must seek to respect the laws of the land in such basic requirements as WEARING FACE MASKS IN PUBLIC SPACES; MAINTAINING THE ESTABLISHED SOCIAL DISTANCES; USING SANITIZERS WHERE NECESSARY AND UTILISING GOOD OLD SOAP AND WATER, AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE AND MAINTAINING WELL PRACTISED HEALTH NORMS WHEN COUGHING AND SNEEZING ETC.
Now, much has been said about the dangers of wearing masks and the reasons are all calculated to get the authorities to remove the restrictions. However, there are ways recommended to deal with breathing issues and the like. For instance, if you have breathing issues, it is recommended that you stay at home, as much as possible.
If you are working or attending a public function, such as a church service, you can take the occasional MASKS BREAKS, when you can go outside or to the bathroom, IN YOUR OWN SPACE, remove the mask and take in gulps of God’s free, fresh air.
What I certainly cannot concur with, is the attitude that I should not wear my mask in a public space, because ‘God will protect me, once I trust him.’
When you take such a stance, you have to remember that the same God, admonishes us to be ‘as wise as serpents and as harmless as doves.’
He further admonishes us to ‘respect authority.’
When I remove my mask in a public space as well because I am trusting God to protect me, I also have to remember that in the process, I may be making some of my fellowmen, most uncomfortable, because they may not have the same trusting faith that I purport to exhibit and so contrary to God’s word, I may end up OFFENDING a brother or sister, with my stance.
As my Pastor indicated in church one Sabbath: ‘If you are going to come to church and refuse to abide by the established protocols, then TAP HOME!’
Our federation has a low rate in terms of corona cases and we ought to seek to keep it that way. WE ARE NOT ‘COVID FREE,’ as some erroneously advertise. We also have to remember that there is a real possibility that there are ASYMPTOMATIC cases amongst us.
We cannot maintain such an enviable status if we are wont to be careless and DON’T KAY.
The God that we serve, would expect us to be wise and not only protect the body that he has asked us to be a steward over but also seek to protect others in the process.
That’s the way I see it. How do you see it?