Waking Up

There are moments in our lives that change everything.  These are the watershed moments, the events that bring about a new reality, whether we like it or not.  For our country, we experienced watershed moments in the Vietnam War, the 9/11 attacks or the financial crisis of 2008.   In our personal lives, these watershed moments can be beautiful or traumatic.  To be baptized into the Christian faith is a life-changing commitment.  To lose a parent, a child, or a spouse is a life-changing loss.  Life can’t be the same again.  Right after the change has happened you may wake up in the morning and find that it takes a moment to realize that things are different now.  You might even hesitate to get out of bed and engage in the day.  You know you should.  You must.  Life is different, but life must go on.

COVID has changed our lives permanently.  The worldwide trauma induced by this virus has affected every sector of society.  The dark cloud of the pandemic hovers over daily life, threatening a storm even as the sun seems to shine.  Our spiritual lives are not immune to the effect of the new reality.  Where is God in a pandemic?  What role does church have in our lives?  Is it just to offer an online worship service or Bible study?  Do we really need to physically be together?  What about masks?  What about physical distancing?  Is it all really worth it?

Yes.

The God’s truth speaks powerfully in situations like these.  Think about the stories from the Bible.  Life was never going to be the same again for the Hebrew people after they travelled through the Red Sea.  No, it wasn’t easy, but God used that situation to give them his truth and lead them to the Promised Land.  Life was never going to be the same again for the people of Judah after Babylon destroyed Jerusalem and exiled the people to Babylon.  It wasn’t easy, but God used it to demonstrate his faithfulness and brought them back to the Promised Land.   In Jesus’ time, Judea was occupied by Rome.  Nothing was the same as it once was.  However, God used that terrifying moment in time to send the Savior of the world.  God’s truth shone all the brighter in the midst of the challenges.  God’s people trusted Him, regardless of their new reality and God saved them. 

It’s time to wake up.  Maybe you wake up every day to our COVID reality and do what I do when I don’t want to face the day.  Roll over and go back to sleep!  But that’s not what God wants.  God’s people wandered through the desert for 40 years because they wanted to roll over and go back to sleep.  God wants us to engage our new reality and trust in Him.  Wake up from the COVID sleep and engage with God’s word.  Trust me, it will speak to your life.  Come and listen to it.  Gather with God’s people.  Worship, sing and pray.  Share it with others.  Serve the less fortunate.  Be the church!