Peter Shee—Singapore
Winter in Israel
differs from the drab, depressing and frosty months in some places. After
autumn seeding at the beginning of the rainy season, the showers increase into heavy
winter rains, causing the crops to grow. The rain should continue into spring,
when the latter rain matures the grain for harvest. However, weather in the
holy land is as unpredictable as the hearts of the children of Israel, so when
rainfall becomes sporadic or when there is no latter rain, many of the crops
fail to ripen, resulting in a poor harvest. In biblical times, this was a
reflection of God’s displeasure with His people (Jer 3:3)..
So on one hand,
winter is the gateway to fruitfulness and vitality; on the other hand, it can
be a time of trepidation. Hence, winter is a time of waiting—either in joyful
expectation of renewal or with repentant prayer for restoration. In either
case, it is a time of looking to God to fulfil His promises when spring
arrives.
Theme article “The
Winter Rains” reminds us of God’s faithfulness—He works out His eternal plan
throughout human history out of His goodwill, despite human weakness,
fickleness and faithlessness.
The Bible Study,
“The Dwelling Place Where God has Chosen to Establish His Name (II),” continues
to look at the church as the culmination of God’s dwelling with men. Time and
again, God departs and returns to His disobedient people, to the land of His
choice, to dwell in the tabernacle erected for His name. From the rejection of
Eli and Shiloh to the choosing of David and Jerusalem, the Lord maps out His
unchanging plan to establish for Himself a community in the Messiah, in whose
midst He will permanently dwell. From the winter of rejection to the spring of
restoration in the apostolic times—in today’s context, we witness the revival
of the true church that conforms to the apostolic faith.
It is interesting to
compare God’s departure and return with the story of departure and return of
God’s people from the land of Israel in “Naomi’s Return.” The Bethlehem
family’s encounter with famine, death, and eventual restoration ought to teach
us to wait on God instead of losing hope in adversity. Christian understanding
of suffering and our appropriate response to it are explored in “When Suffering
Comes.” The article “Moses Returns to Egypt (I)” highlights the fact that we do
not know our time and, much less, God’s time. It again brings to the fore the
fact that we should wait on the Lord, for He makes all things beautiful in His
time (Eccl 3:11).
“Against the Tide” takes lessons from Noah, who stood against the
surging waves of moral decline, and walked with God while waiting for the
cleansing deluge. Moreover, this article cites examples of moral issues in the
modern world and offers practical approaches to standing against them.
One interesting
point in “Hard Hearts” is the call to thaw our hearts. If there is a
commonality between the summer and winter, it must be the hardness of the
parched ground and the frozen hearts that require thawing.
May this issue of
Manna evoke in you an earnest expectation of renewal, and the prayer: “Lord to
my heart bring back the springtime. Take away the cold and dark of sin!”
