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In this time of minimalized
ministry, I have been taking time to watch and listen to various clergy and
preachers to see what is being said about the Covid-19 pandemic and how we
should respond to it. There seems to be a common theme of “Choose faith not fear”
amongst us. We all have two dogs in this fight: one called faith and the other
called fear. Fear at this moment is only natural and total human. We are in a
state of fear, of chaos, of sickness and of death. People ask me which is
stronger faith of fear? Want to know which one is the strongest? It’s the one
you feed. In point of fact, only a fool would have no fear in all that is going
on. But there is the other side of things. Where is your faith? Do you remind
yourself of what Jesus said, “Who among you can add a single hour to your life
by worrying?” What do you believe at this moment? Who do you trust in times of
trouble and of fear? Do you choose Jesus?
There is a reality setting in
for many of us that we are not in control. This present crisis has highlighted
this fact. We are tempted to think about ourselves and do want we want because what
doctors, nurses and the governments are supposed to do, is look after us if we
get into trouble. I suspect that this is why we are seeing governments at
various levels restrict and curtail liberties that we are used to enjoying. Work
is shutting down. Schools, gyms, restaurants, even Churches are closed. We are
not to be within 6 feet of each other. And yet there are still some who think
that this is someone else’s issue, someone else’s problem. It does not affect
me. I am not sick. I am going to continue on as usual until I have to change.
This is not helpful and is not caring for yourself nor for the people around you.
On the upside, there are some
things that we can do and should do in this time of restrictions that are not
against the law. These are things that can build us up and allow us to be
caring of others and even to effectively proclaim the Good News of God in
Christ. (h/t to Nicky Gumbel from Holy Trinity Church, Brompton in the UK as I
draw from his inspiration)
Stay
Prayerful
Many will know the story of Jesus getting in the boat
with his disciples to go across the lake and they end up getting caught up in a
storm that is powerful enough to sink the boat. Keep in mind many of these men
in this boat are experienced fishermen. They were watching the waves, rain and
bracing themselves against the winds. They grew afraid. Where is Jesus? He is
in the stern fast asleep on the pilot’s cushion. (Luke 8.22-25). In frustration
and fear, they wake Jesus and ask him, “Don’t you care if we die?” Jesus gets
up from his nap, and speaks to the storm and says, “Be at peace, be still.”
Jesus then turns to his disciples and asks
them, “Where is your faith?”
In moments like this, we are tempted to look at the
storm, the things that are going on around us. Such things can cause us to despair
and event to fall into depression. Notice what the disciples did, they went to Jesus
with their fears and frustrations and asked him to do something about it. Jesus
spoke to the storm and calm the situation because his disciples asked him to.
It is a simple prayer and of course, God cares for each and for all of us. We need
to make our petitions known to God and do so with thanksgiving that God is
already there in the situation working for us and for good. We need to be prayerful
which not just words, but also keep an attitude of altitude. This means that we
know that Jesus in the boat and we are with him. Because we are tempted to fix
our eyes on the storm, we need to work at fixing our eyes on Jesus. We can ask
for Jesus to stop this illness and to bring health and whole back to us.
Stay
wise
One of my favourite verses of
Scripture that I use in my own life is “For this reason I remind you to fan
into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for
God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” (2nd Timothy 1.6-7 ESV) So, it makes
sense for me to say to you, have faith and use soap. When you wash your hands,
instead of singing Happy Birthday, sing the Doxology and give thanks to God. We
can choose to have faith over fear. We can choose to limit the amount of cable
news we get, the amount radio news we listen to and we can choose to fill ourselves
to listen to music, make time to pray and to worship which will take our eyes
from the storm and help us to focus on Jesus. We can choose faith and put fear
in its place.
Stay
kind!
Maybe this is a no brainer but there is no need to hoard
when we go to the grocery store. People are hoarding hand sanitizer, wipes, toilet
paper, flour, meat and other things. We need to consider carefully the examples
of the selflessness of others and then try, as best we can to follow in that
way. I think of a priest in Italy who came down with this horrible virus and
his parish went out and bought him a ventilator so that he could survive and
continue to serve his people. Then he heard of a young boy who needed the ventilator
and he demanded that he be removed from his and the machine be taken to the boy.
Shortly after the priest died of the illness but the boy he gave the machine to,
lives. Be kind to others. It is life-giving. Be generous and let us make sure
that we care for the vulnerable.
Stay united
Remember to stay united with one another. We are
fighting a virus, not one another. Never waste an opportunity to extend
forgiveness or for reconciliation. Invite people to the online services and
there might be opportunities to share the Good News with those who need it.
Stay Connected
Be wary of isolating yourself to the point where you
cut yourself off from everyone else. There may need to be physical distance,
but we need to stay connected. There are lots of ways to do this through
phones, emails, texting, video chatting, even old fashion note and letter writing.
Stay Confident
Finally, I know that when I discovered what might be
coming in terms of illness and that as a person with an “underlying health
condition” I was going to increasingly isolate myself for my protection I found
myself angry because I could not control what was happening and going to happen.
It was a reminder, that as much as I like to think I am in control, I am not.
But then I know that Jesus is and that he has called me into the boat to be
with him in this storm. Jesus is in control. Jesus reigns. He came to us in
flesh and blood. He suffered and knew pain. He has been through it all including
death and the grave and yet he lives. And because he lives, he is in the boat
and he is in control right now.
Let us put our eyes on Jesus. Let us cast our burdens
on Jesus for he cares for us. Let us choose faith over fear. And let us remember
we are in the palm of his hand. He has us so much more than we have him. Thanks
be to God for that.
Jason+
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