It’s impossible to escape COVID-19 news, no matter where you look. And everyone, it seems, is becoming a COVID-19 expert - so I won’t claim to have some inside information. But you might have tried to stock up for the weeks ahead —

Some preventive action has been prevented:

I wanted to buy hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes but …

And with every restaurant closed it’s stock-up-at-the-grocery-store, and why-is-everything-sold-out?

It reminds me of a vivid moment in Romania before the Iron Curtain came down. The only food available on the grocery shelves was three mason jars of preserved plums. That was it. No bread, no milk, no eggs or meat or vegetables, or fresh fruit, or flour or butter or pizza, or instant meals or anything else. Just three jars of preserved plums.

A truck pulled up at the bakery next door and immediately a long, orderly line formed, all the way down the street. Fresh bread was wheeled into the store and the women behind the bakery counter began serving customers - limit one loaf per person. In no time the supply of bread was gone.

My friend, Hugh, took a picture of me standing in the middle of the street with the bread queue behind me.. Immediately a leather gloved hand came down in front of the camera (that was in the pre-digital days when we used cameras loaded with film), flipped open the film cartridge and removed the reel, and the dark clad figure fixed us in a speechless, withering stare, and disappeared into the crowded street. We didn’t try shooting anymore pictures.

Thinking about the COVID-19 lockdown - it isn’t so bad. We may feel bored but we keep a lot of freedoms. We may not be able to physically worship as a congregation, but we remain free to share our thoughts over several media platforms. We may not be able to fly distances but we are still free to touch base virtually and if needed to visit folks (taking precautions about coughs and contact) and drive places. And we know that the lockdown is for the good of our society rather than being totalitarian control.

More than all this, we have freedom to unravel the spiritual mysteries of life.

If you heard our virtual message on Sunday (https://www.orchardvalley.org/recent-sermons) you’ll know that there are some things that we should be afraid of (but usually aren’t), and other things that we are often afraid of — but which we really shouldn’t fear. So I would like to encourage us all to go deeper into God.

How do I do this? you may ask. First, set up a special place where the dog won’t disturb you and where you can get in a mindset to seek God. Block out some time, gather the materials you need - a Bible, a place to ‘make notes’ (ipad, sketch book, journal etc), and begin your quest. If you already have an ongoing approach and content, use it! If not turn to Hebrews 10:19-39, read it and write stuff down as you read, and after you’ve made your own notes, answer these questions:

verses 19-22 tells us to draw near to Jesus. What prevents me from doing this.? Why? What should I do about this barrier?

verses 26-31 talks about fear. Imagine the worst possible world for you. What would it look like? - list ten features of that worst possible world. What can I thank God for?

verses 37-39 encourages us to care for the soul. What does this mean to me? If I am going to care about my soul, then how do I need to change my life? List five action steps you can take. Pick one. Make yourself a plan to put it into action.