Stay Calm
If there was a group of people who have the ability to stay calm during troublesome times, it should be Christians, right?
After all, we have the comforting presence of His Holy Spirit living within us! This Holy Voice should be able to lead us into peace and away from worry if I’m not mistaken.
But do we allow Him to do just that? Honestly, I think we are very capable of worrying His comforting effects away.
Our Lord touched on the subject of worry in a powerful way by asking a very simple question:
“Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?”
Matthew 6:27
Do we REALLY change anything by worrying? No.
Think Clear
Or as my granddad used to say “Use your head for something other than a hat-rack.”
God wants His children to have clarity, “clear thinking” if you will, when it comes to these times. I’ve heard Pastors and Christians alike talking about how COVID-19 countermeasures are an attack on Christianity. When North Carolina’s Governor made the ruling that gatherings of over 100 people are no longer allowed, the reaction was not one becoming of Christians.
I need to let you know something… What you think about NC’s Governor has no bearing on the fact that this is not an attack on Christians. This is not a mandate from the state forbidding Christians to worship. Rather, it’s an attack on a virus that can get out of hand faster than you can sneeze.
Think with me for a moment on how not following this mandate can cause so much more harm than good:
(1) The elderly are most susceptible to this coronavirus – and attendance at most churches trends more to elderly folks.
(2) What if someone at church has this sickness, gives it to a visiting family (or a family estranged from the church), and someone dies – how fast do you think a lawsuit could be forthcoming? (Especially if you were having Church against your State’s mandate.)
(3) What if a literal break-out happens in your city/town and the genesis of it was traced back to a Church meeting? How would you feel knowing multiple deaths were “likely” caused because of inconsiderate leadership? What would that do to the testimony of Christ in your area?
These are just three horrible scenarios I thought of within five minutes of giving it some “clear” thought.
Trust me on this… if for one second I thought what these governors are doing is an attack on Christian freedoms and our right to worship, this article would take on a much different tenor.
But it’s not. They haven’t attacked us.
They’re asking us to do uncomfortable things in an uncomfortable time so we can return to normalcy as soon as possible!
Every level headed person wants exactly this same thing.
In a way, all this is sort of like having surgery. A sweet sister in the Lord that I’ve known since I started pastoring in my early 20’s needed knee replacement surgery last week.
As I prayed for her and checked up on her through Facebook and other means, I thought about the whole idea of surgery.
Who in their right mind would let a stranger cut them open with a scalpel, take a saw out of their toolbox, and proceed to cut a portion of their leg OUT? As in gone! Nevermore to return!
The exact same person who knew this temporary, extreme pain would lead to many more pain-free days down the road – that’s who!
This is the same mindset we must keep during all this quarantine and carefulness. Things are uncomfortable right now. But we willingly do these countermeasures because we want a better day ahead. The more of these we accomplish, the faster that day will come.