Read: Psalms 23

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. (Psa 23:4)

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It Won’t Happen to Us

The World Health Organization told us a long time ago that a major health pandemic was overdue. But few of us expected it to happen. Not right now, anyway. It might happen in ten years, or fifty years, but not this year. And certainly not to North America.

We should have known better. All of us learned about the Bubonic Plague and the Spanish Influenza pandemic in our school history classes. Both caused millions of deaths at a time when the world’s population was a lot lower and much less mobile than it is now.

But those are just statistics from history textbooks. Right?

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But it Did

My wife and I were over 2,000 miles from home helping care for her parents when the bubble burst. We knew China had some cases of COVID-19 a month of so before we left. We learned that our country had a case a week before we left home. The first death took place during the middle of our stay. A few days later we attended a program put on by the students where our daughter taught. I don’t think we seriously considered the possibility of that being dangerous.

But over that weekend, the sky fell, or so it seemed. We listened to announcement after announcement, each with progressively worse news. For a while we wondered if we’d even be able to fly home again.

We did get home. Our plane was only half full. Half of the passengers seemed to be hiding sniffles or coughs. Some of the passengers were university students trying to get home before events became even worse. It was a serious flight. I overheard little conversation and no laughter and joking or carrying on.

I think all of us were in a state of shock.

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What Now?

My wife and I are self-quarantining for the recommended two weeks. By the end of the month we should know if we have the dreaded COVID-19 or whether we managed to navigate three airports and two flights safely. We have family to bring us groceries for now, and I already work from home.

But this is only the beginning for all of us. Some people still aren’t taking this seriously. However, most people are realizing that this is serious business. The jokes and the light-hearted remarks are fading away on social media.

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Did God Do This to Us?

I’ve already gotten some emails and comments from people looking to start a campaign against God. Is this God’s fault? Really?

No. We are part of a broken world because of sin. We brought this on ourselves, since we are the sinners. We deserve much worse than this! Someone, somewhere, dreamed up the idea that God owes us an enjoyable time here on earth. He owes us a guaranteed income and a middle-class lifestyle. A lot of people, including a lot who should know better, have picked up on this idea. Unfortunately, the last several weeks have pricked our collective, complacent balloons and given us a good dose of reality.

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What About the Future?

I don’t know the answer to this. I suspect that things will get worse before they get better. Perhaps even much worse. I listened to an online seminar hosted by six experts who talked about these things. All were hesitant to put a definite date on the end of it. One said six weeks. Another thought it could go on for twelve weeks. Apparently, some government contingency plans extend the possibility to eighteen months.

In other words, we really don’t know. China has apparently peaked at close to 12 weeks, but the aftermath could still continue for months.

I’ve faced the fact (or tried to, at least), that I might not be around to enjoy the return to “normal” life. For various reasons such as age, underlying health factors, and immunosuppressant medication, I am in a high-risk bracket. I would guess that the chances are high that I’ve been exposed. If so, I might not survive this. In the meantime, my wife and I are isolated together

Death isn’t the worst thing that can happen, however, if you’re ready for it. But a lot of people aren’t ready. You probably know if you are or not. If not, the nice thing about this scenario is that you have lots of time to think about it and get ready. Take a close look at your life and your future.

One of my favorite Bible passages is found in Matthew 11:27 – 30. It’s an invitation. It promises rest. Even in times like this, or worse, you can have rest.

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Are you Anxious? Concerned? Worried?

Here is your answer. Straight from Jesus Christ…

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Mat 11:28-30)

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