Country Living: Choosing a Location Conducive to Character Development
By Amy Pavlovik
God placed Adam and Even in "the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it." (Genesis 2:15) His original plan for us was to live where we could be close to nature on a daily, constant basis, because "the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made." (Romans 1:20)
Perhaps you can recall a time when the quiet, peaceful beauties of nature surrounded you. How did it affect your thoughts and emotions? What did the still, tree-lined lake, the call of loons from a hidden island, or the misty fog rising from a green meadow, do for your outlook on life? Did God seem near?
Compare this with a time when you found yourself in a busy city. What thoughts and feelings came to mind amid the bright lights, dirty streets, concrete, showy billboards, and pleasure-seeking crowds? Did the worldly music, rush of cars, and the abundance of delights for sale distract you?
Which of these two environments assisted your spiritual growth, your awareness of God's presence? Which one, on the other hand, not only failed to assist right thinking, but even hindered it?
God holds us responsible to do all in our power to smooth our own path to heaven. To "work out [our] own salvation with fear and trembling" means putting forth serious efforts on our own part, in cooperation with the work God wants to do in us. (Philippians 2:12) The choice of where we will live does have an impact on the thoughts we think, the life we live, and the character we form. If we are serious about perfecting Christian character, we will not want to locate ourselves where we will miss out on the uplifting, purifying influences of God's creation, and where we will be in close contact with the degrading influences of sinful humanity.
Lot chose city living. Lot "pitched his tent toward Sodom. But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly." (Genesis 13:12, 13) In time, Lot's family moved from their tent into a house in the city. In the overthrow of Sodom, all his family members sacrificed their lives to the worldly connections they had formed in that city, except for two daughters. Yet although they escaped the city with Lot, they carried its corruption with them, as evidenced by the acts of wickedness they committed.
God says, "Come out from among them, and be ye separate,... and touch not the unclean thing." (2 Corinthians 6:17) Instead of daily mingling with the influences of the wicked world by living amidst them, we should separate ourselves from these things. We should make our homes where we can constantly behold our Creator in His created works.
There are other benefits of country living. A country home gives us the opportunity to raise a garden, the employment which God gave to Adam. Tending the growing plants is wholesome work that provides results. It profitably uses time that might be spent on shopping, eating out, watching TV, or surfing the internet, if one lived in the city. Healthy, natural occupations are good for a healthy mind as well as a healthy body.
The ability to grow much of our own food will help us be prepared when the time comes when "no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark" of the beast. (Revelation 13:17) In those days, we will have to be able to survive without grocery stores, electricity, city water, or gasoline. We will not even be able to pay rent. Jesus prophesied, "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be." (Matthew 24:21) We will need to be prepared to live without any reliance on the system. That preparation begins now, as we choose where to make our homes.
Country living greatly shields us and our children from the evil influences of the world, with which a person is surrounded in the city. By daily observing the suggestive pictures, immodest dress, and worldly lifestyles in the city, these things become not so repulsive to us.
It may take a seeming sacrifice to move to the country. It may require a change of jobs, transition to a smaller, simpler home, and contentment with physical work and natural pleasures instead of shopping, decorating, or eating out. You may find yourself lonely as you miss the friends and social events of before. Yet the rewards far outweigh the apparent difficulties. If the pure, clean influences of the country assist your family in entering the Holy City as an unbroken circle, it will more than repay you.
But what if you are not able to move to the country? You may be a wife whose husband is unwilling to leave the city, or a child whose parents desire to remain. If so, earnestly pray for those in authority over you, for the Holy Spirit's pleading with their hearts. Then honestly talk with them about your convictions. Make sure that your own life is exemplary of what you are suggesting. If, for example, your husband knows you as a big shopper, or one who doesn't enjoy yard work, he may question whether your desire for the country is just a passing excitement which you would soon tire of in reality.
In any case, put in practice even now whatever you can of the country lifestyle. Grow even a small garden if you have a yard. Shop only as really necessary and begin to live economically. Depend less on processed and prepared foods. Learn canning and other skills you would need in the country. Have a yard sale and sell off unnecessary items which only tie you to the city. Take your children out to a state park for a day of recreation, rather than to McDonald's, funpark rides, or miniature golf. Help your family enjoy some of the pleasures of the country even now. And most of all, keep praying. God can change hearts.
If you are the husband and father, and your family is not elated by the suggestion of moving to the country, you also need to be in much prayer. You also need to change your own lifestyle in such a way as to make your suggestions attractive to your wife and children. If you spend most of your free time on the internet, your family may view the idea of country living as consignment to endless boredom and loneliness. Shut off the internet and start spending time with your family. Take them out in the country for a walk along a lake or a weekend of camping. Grow a small vegetable garden together. Show them that you are interested in them. As they begin to take more pleasure in your company, maybe they will not feel such a need for outside-the-home entertainments and friendships as they do now.
But as the head of the home, you also have the responsibility of leading your family in right paths. God will hold you responsible if your children grow up ungodly. You have a divine obligation to do all you can to promote their development of right character, an obligation which you cannot shirk and be guiltless before God. You must make the final decision about where your family lives. But take great care that you lead instead of drive them. Try to secure their willing support rather than forcing your idea upon them.
Another question that arises when we consider country living is: What about evangelizing the people in the cities? How will they be reached if Christians live in the country? "Shall not the cities be warned? Yes; not by God's people living in them, but by their visiting them, to warn them of what is coming upon the earth." (Ellen White, Country Living, p. 30)
We do have a great responsibility to evangelize the lost people who live in the cities. A balance is needed. We are not to jeopardize our own and our family's souls in order to live in the city for evangelism purposes. On the other hand, we must not selfishly gather all the benefits of country living to ourselves and put forth only weak efforts to bring God's love and truth to city dwellers.
In considering where you will live, pray much, and ask God to intervene in your circumstances. Do not move impulsively, but wisely weigh the results of each contemplated step.
"But it just isn't possible for me to move to the country at this time," you may be saying. Bring this before the Lord. He understands your peculiar situation. Do not be discouraged. He can open ways and means before you that you do not expect. You might find yourself currently in a situation similar to one of these:
- You may be struggling financially, perhaps living in an economically depressed country where the only wages you can make do not even cover your family's living expenses. You know you could not buy or build a home with so little.
- You may be living as a missionary in a country where rental housing is not available in the countryside. Because of your temporariness or need to move from place to place, buying is not an option. You may need to live in a small town if that is all that is available.
- You might be handicapped and unable to do things on your own without help. Perhaps you are elderly and relying on the care of your children.
Make sure your motives are right before God. Do not excuse yourself from duty by the desire to retain a high-paying job or social connections. Selfish motives are not a good reason for depriving yourself and your family of the benefits of the country.
And if you unavoidably find yourself living in town, do the best you can. Go out for days in the country. Live very economically and save what you can. And keep praying. You may be surprised how God will open before you the doors that have long seemed locked.