First, the closures and responses to COVID-19 are not a conspiracy attempt by socialist to win the election in November. Can we drop that already? As Christians we don’t give ourselves to unsubstantiated rumors and “what if’s?” Christians are people of truth who live in the light and not the shadows.
The closures are not an immature overreaction by people you disagree with. Christians follow the lead of their authorities. We are the first to acknowledge authority because we have submitted to a higher authority. Until we are told to suppress the gospel, we should be leading the way as examples for the love of our neighbors.
The closures are the only measures we have to lower the impact of the virus. When this is all over, and you want to say that all this was over nothing, it will be because of the closures and responses. The goal is to mitigate the spread or “flatten the curve.” This article isn’t exhaustive, but it’s a clear summary worth reading.
I know I’m only a pastor, and that means I’m not a health expert. Which is exactly why I am responding with care and concern. It’s why I’m doing my part to help flatten the curve. I’m not an expert, and I’m not prone to following conspiracy theories or political propaganda.
It’s true that there are huge outbreaks in our world all the time; It’s one of the reminders of the curse of sin. It’s true that the flu hits hard every year… and yet people who watch the flu spread and have its impact year after year, have warned us that this is different. Another reminder of the curse of sin is pride. Pride that thinks it knows better when it it doesn’t. Pride that diminishes the real risk to win some approval in the moment. Pride that says follow me rather than those who really know what they are talking about.
We need to be humble right now. We really need to humble ourselves all the time, it’s a mark of those who follow Jesus. We need to make some sacrifices so that we don’t contribute to the spread of a virus that could be devastating to others. Sacrifice is another mark of those who follow Jesus.
This is a moment where we as Christians and as Americans can prove we really do care about others. It’s an opportunity to put the good of our communities and our country above our individual wants and opinions.
All of the recommended responses are going to have positive health benefits for our country. At the same time, the same responses are causing hardships for many. There will be even more difficulties as the economic impact expands. This is a time to pray not panic. This is a time to be concerned not critical. This is a time to prepare to be generous and not greedy.
This is not a time for finger-pointing, grandstanding, or jockeying for a bigger platform.
Think about who you could help:
- There are people who need to work, but whose children are home now because schools are closed. You might watch their kids.
- There are many who need to stay home to avoid the risk, they need people to pick up prescriptions, run by the grocery store, pick up some toilet paper.
- There are others who just need a friend, they need to talk about something else, they need to enjoy a good conversation, give them a call.
- If there is an outbreak in our community, there are health care professionals who are going to be tired, stressed, and potentially overwhelmed. Encourage them, thank them, offer to run errands for them, and pray for them.
There will be many other ways to help, let’s be those people as the situation unfolds.