"Indeed"

 "But when his brethren were gone up, then went he also up unto the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret." (John 7:10 KJV)

  "He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street." (Isaiah 42:2 KJV) 

 I might not be the best one to speak to this, but I feel as though it needs to be said. As you know, these are very interesting times that we are living in; as it goes, these last couple of years have been quite weird, to say the least. There still are many people that are afraid or hesitant to return to church; many of them are being held captive, not only by fear, but by unbelief and doubt, due to the churches which took the bait and closed their doors during the lock-down. 

 As it so happened, I was somewhat okay with it when it first came about. It was Easter, oddly enough, and I was originally going to share my journey during three services; but as it turned out, I did a prerecorded interview, and didn't even need to do one live service. Even the YouTube services seemed as though they were special, at first, but after several weeks of doing church from home, they lacked real intimacy and I was staving for fellowship. 

 After several months, I had thoughts of finding a different church that might have had the nerve to come together, no matter what the government might say. I even thought of starting a church in my home, to make church feel more real and less about being virtual. Thankfully, we started meeting out on the grass! What a relief that was, because I came very close to jumping ship. 

 Besides all of this, I had really never given up hope! Even though I might have started to feel as though we were being forced into submission and having our rights to fellowship taken away, I still believed that God was right in the midst of it all and holding us all together. If anything, it might have been somewhat a sifting, like when the wheat is tossed up, the chaff is taken away by the wind, and the kernel is what remains. 

 Anywho: there was a very important reason that Jesus did not teach in the streets: He either taught in the Temple or outside of town, having the people either be a captive audience, or they would come out to Him. Matthew Henry says, "It is not, Who comes first? that will be the question, but, Who comes fittest? If we bring our hearts with us, it is no matter who gets before us." 

 You might want to let that sink in, as it were; the matter is not where you are or when you might get there, but Who you came to see, and What are you expecting to happen! It is a Matter of the Heart...

"The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican." (Luke 18:11 KJV)