The Two Faces of COVID-19

I continue to walk Daisy every day as we stretch into another month of the novel coronavirus pandemic.  Our walks used to take about 40 minutes for the 2-mile stretch, but now we’ve had walks that lasted well past an hour.  The reason?  SO many people are outside enjoying some fresh air.

I see tons of beautiful chalk artwork, families on bicycles, kids playing ball with each other from ACROSS the street, scads of dog walkers, and no-dog walkers.  Lots of cleaning going on in garages, gutters, gardens, windows and vehicles.  It’s like every day is a Saturday afternoon.

I’ve truly enjoyed chatting with neighbors I haven’t seen all winter as well as people I’ve never met.  Didn’t know they even lived in the area.  We’re learning so much about each other and our families and livelihoods and making some real connections.  There’s a certain party atmosphere about it all.  It reminds me of Spring quarter up at Iowa State when the weather turned sunny and warm, and we all came crawling out of our winter hideaways.  Frisbees flying, radios blaring, even sun bathers appearing as the temps hit 60s.

Feel good stories abound about teachers driving through their students’ neighborhoods, caravans passing in front of the birthday child’s home, singers gathering outside care facilities to serenade those stuck inside and so many more creative ways that people are connecting.  They’re some of the most heart-warming stories I’ve seen in a very long time.

In isolation (unintentional pun), this looks like a happy-go-lucky time in our world where kindness is extended a million times a day, families and friends are talking in more profound ways than ever before and life couldn’t be better.

COMEDY/HAPPY.  FACE.

But we all know better, don’t we?  Every morning and every evening, I tune in to the national news and get the latest statistics and dire predictions for the day.  While not wanting to spend my time ensconced in this misery, it’s important to face the realities of the TOTALITY of this situation, not just what is seen on a 2-mile dog walk.

Thousand of people of all ages are getting ill and dying, thousands more are losing businesses and jobs, and bank accounts are being decimated.  Front-line workers in healthcare, emergency service, supply chain industries and many other essential areas are literally putting their lives on the line as they serve the general public during this crisis.

The images and interviews I see on the news on a daily basis are heartbreaking. It’s difficult to even get our heads around the depth of tragedy resulting from COVID-19.  And, make no mistake, this time, it’s not in a foreign land thousands of miles away. It’s in Washington State and Queens and New Orleans and Detroit and innumerable other locations around the country.  It is on OUR shores.  It may not be noticeable in my neighborhood or yours YET, but people are suffering everywhere.

TRAGEDY. FACE

Now What?

When I go from the sunny neighborhood walk and sit down in front of the devastating evening news, it’s clear to me, as it was to Dorothy when she said to Toto, “We’re not in Kansas anymore.”

I’d like to put this huge dichotomy into a framework that I’ve written about often from this ministry site.  The fact that joy and sorrow exist side-by-side in this fallen world.  What a massive example of that phenomenon are we living with right now.

How does that inform how we respond to these “night and day” scenarios?

First of all, acknowledge that BOTH are true and widespread.  Don’t pretend one or the other doesn’t exist.  Those happy neighborhood birthday caravans, and those tearful and exhausted healthcare workers are both reality.

For the HAPPY situations, don’t stop!  Appreciate the blessings you are seeing in your own life through this time, whether it be getting more fresh air and exercise, or reconnecting to family members in meaningful ways for the first time in years.   Continue reaching out (within safety guidelines) with kindness to those who are very alone in this crisis.  Open up your hearts, even during a time where you can’t afford to open up your wallets, to bless those who need it most.

REMEMBER the good things from these days.  We don’t know how long they will last.

For the TRAGIC situations, which many of us are far removed from, pray without ceasing that God would protect those who are the most vulnerable.  That facilities and equipment and personnel will be deployed as efficiently as possible to the ever-increasing hotspots. In most cases, we can’t directly provide aid to those in the most critical locations.  But we can do the things we’ve been told are critical to holding this virus at bay as much as humanly possible.  Right here.  Right now.

REMEMBER all those who are suffering through these days.  We don’t know how long they will last.

As a Christian, I’m constantly wondering what God is doing through this season.  I have zero doubt that he is sovereign over it all, and working good from it in more ways than we can see or imagine.  Many speculate whether God is sounding a warning to this world to get our attention in preparation for a major revival.  Or is this the beginning of the end because we continue to turn our backs on God? Or some combination of both?

None of us knows.  God knows and we put our trust in the Creator of the Universe.

Regardless of his purpose for this virus, please add this to your pray list – that God would open doors for you to spread kindness to others and, most importantly, to share with them the hope we have in Jesus. 

The world needs this now more than ever.

If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:14