I just came home from a conference in Washington, DC plus I am an avid people watcher. This made for an intriguing week. Coronavirus blared from every TV in airports and restaurants. Newspaper headlines were hard to miss. I saw plenty of masks, empty soap dispensers, Clorox wipes atop luggage/airplane trays and many latex gloves in all strata of folks. My husband had a limit on the water he could buy for our monthly grocery run. Friends canceling overseas trips. The politicizing of a virus for gains in the polls. You have seen it in your hometown this week.
The haunted look of fear of death… the fear of the unknown… the fear of not being in control.
During all the coverage of coronavirus on our short 24-hour news cycle, middle Tennessee fell off cable news. Devastating tornadoes had left a swath of death and destruction on March 2nd and 3rd. As I type, the death toll stands at 25 souls and several still missing. As I perused my Facebook at the hotel, I came upon a beautiful story of Middle Tennessee. A national CBS reporter noted on the air,
“There was a resilience that seemed to bond them together which was inspiring to me…every single person I talked to mentioned God…I saw people walking away from their homes with the Bible untouched, the photo untouched as if it was something precious and it ultimately was to them. Those were the little moments of joy I was surprised to find.” Eric Begnaud, CBS National News
Wow, tears filled my eyes. I KNOW THOSE PEOPLE. I wanted to shout, “THEY ARE MY PEOPLE”. Yes, my friends in Tennessee are all fine and made it through but I KNOW those folks the reporter was surprised to find. They are present in our churches, in ICU waiting rooms, at the funeral home, in prison ministries, down at the homeless shelter and bringing you food when you come home from the hospital. They are in the mission field. They teach; they build; they provide healthcare; they manage businesses. God’s family. They are hurting and suffering through this tornado and yet they know there is a better world a’coming and WHO holds the key. I find myself humming my favorite hymn, “This World is not my Home” as I type.
And then I brought myself to the TV blaring warnings about the coronavirus. I witnessed two travelers in DC speak nihilistic words about the future. One young lady exclaimed loudly and with great angst/tears that the world is being destroyed by adults who didn’t care about global warming, healthcare, and the future. It was pretty similar to a popular young lady on Youtube sounding her generation’s fear of global warming. I listened to a second conversation of a young woman with gloves and her phone in a Ziploc bag, wiping everything down and a masked and gloved middle-aged man. They both were of the opinion that they were going to survive this pandemic no matter what. I was so sad for both observations. I can’t imagine a scarier future than to think it’s in my hands.
Of course, we should be wise and take precautions in this world. Actually, the first microbiology textbook was given to Moses to write. Hand washing was uniquely Jewish in the ancient world. The first quarantine instructions are found in Leviticus; burying the dead and waste outside of the camp was another of God’s instructions. Hyssop has anti-bacterial properties. Jews were blamed for the Black Death or The Plague in the Middle Ages. Their death tolls were much lower than the others in the village. Historians link it to the yearly Passover feast and removal of all grain from the home (first spring cleaning), a source of food for rats who carried the disease. Jews were instructed to break clay pots that a rat touched. Clay is porous and would have carried the bacteria.
Christians have been warned and assured that trouble is coming to each and every one of us. It’s part of the human condition since Eden. It’s going to happen folks.
John 16:33 (NIV) “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
I don’t know what the future holds and neither does anyone else. But I do know who holds the future and I long for the day when all will be made right again. I sure miss some folks that have already arrived in the arms of Jesus. But until that day, I shall raise my clean hands (from blood and water) and praise the ONE who orders my steps. Thank you Tennessee family for showing the national news our hope. Keep loving, praying, forgiving, and serving. Be Jesus to the folks out there. They need you. Maranatha Jayme
Linda Garrett Hicks
March 11, 2020So very well stated! Thank you–and God bless!