Schools closed...events canceled...hospitals inundated...sports seasons suspended...shopping excess at grocery stores (toilet paper anyone)...social distancing...media flurries...travel bans...it reads like an apocalypse movie script.
Except it's all fact.
Is the COVID 19 impact the new normal in a new world?
Many believe it is.
But for me, this provides an opportunity...for the best in us to come out.
Here's what I mean...
We can care for each other in powerful ways as we face this crisis together. Here are some thoughts on how to do this:
- Guard your health: follow the advice of your PCP and CDC advisories. DON'T follow a meme on Facebook...many of them are inaccurate, and some are even dangerously wrong.
- Manage emotions: avoid being overwhelmed and limit media coverage that exacerbates your emotional mood.
- Care for your neighbors: check on those near you, especially those who live alone or single parents with kids. Offer help, stay connected, express support.
- Share resources: Out of your excess share with those who lack.
- Respect the decisions of others: don't invade others choices to distance socially, or self quarantine.
- Don't discriminate: avoid assumptions based on race AND stand against discrimination of people. I have heard from people who have experienced profiling and discrimination first hand due to assumptions about the Coronavirus.
- Pray: if you are a person of faith, pray for the officials, medical personnel, those infected, those in fear, and those near you.
- Embrace the gift: for many people they are heading home due to closings and cancellations. Embrace the gift of downtime, if that's what you have. Be with your family, love each other, play games, watch movies, enjoy the rest.
We will emerge from this virus. The world may be different when we emerge, but we will emerge. There will be new restrictions, new vaccines, new ways of operating, new ways of traveling, but we are a resilient people who will find a way. We can do this together.
As a person of faith, and a pastor, I also believe this crisis gives us the opportunity to remember that there is Someone greater than a disease, a power greater than fear, and hope greater than death. A follower of Jesus from 2000 years ago realized this truth and wrote about it. His name was John, an apostle of Jesus, an eye witness to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Here's what he wrote almost 2000 years ago:
"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear."
1 John 4:16-18 (NIV)
That Someone is Jesus
That Power is love
That Hope is life in Christ
In these coming days, let's make a new world based on these truths where
...faith replaces fear.
...hope defeats despair
...community replaces isolation
...love conquers hate
...love conquers hate
Join me in creating this new world that defeats COVID-19
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