All the Un’s of a Pandemic

It’s 2020 and we have found ourselves in the very unlikely state of a world pandemic. I read a joke a while back that said: “To be fair, none of us answered the question correctly about where we would be in five years.” For the first time in human consciousness, we’re all experiencing the same major world event, at the same time. Not all our experiences are the same, with varying levels of lock-down and restriction – from the extreme where you dare not leave your house for fear of either catching the virus or being locked up, to the slightly more relaxed stance of social responsibility, expecting people to wear masks when needed and be physically distanced.

What is the same is that it is all unfamiliar. The Spanish Flu was so long ago that even though there are similarities, life today is very strange. Schooling at home, limiting time and contact with loved ones, wearing masks like it’s normal. To many it seems unfair. “Why should I be forced to wear a mask when my immune system is strong enough to fight this?” they ask. My answer is that it’s not about you – wearing a mask is about the people around you, and the people around them, and the people around them.

So much is unknown. For starters, it’s a novel virus – doctors are doing their best to make educated statements and give responsible medical advice but they’re in uncharted waters. And to add insult to injury, there is so much misinformation to wade through that it has become increasingly challenging to know what is truth. Schooling is unknown – how do we do it now? Work is unknown – will I have a job next week? Life is unknown – if I catch this, will I die? Or even worse, will I infect someone else and will they die?

It’s hard to not feel completely overwhelmed by this uncontrollable wave, living in unprecedented times, through unimaginable pain and trials, leaving you feeling uncertain, unsettled, and as if life has just become completely unbearable.

It’s tough to not become ungrateful. There are still many things to be grateful for: most of all the promise of eternal life. Each of our experiences are different and so our gratefulness will look different but I want to challenge you to seek out the things you can say thank you for.

Most of all, it can be wearisome to work against being unkind. 

Above all else, guard your heart,for everything you do flows from it.

Proverbs 4:23 (NIV)

But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them.

Matthew 15:18 (NIV)

It is so easy to fall into the way of the world – saying hurtful things, lashing out in anger, being nasty and mean – even to the ones you love. During times of stress, we often fall back into old ways of living and it’s something we need to unlearn, over and over again.

Thankfully, there is Grace; sweet and undeserved grace from our Father. He, who is never unkind, for whom the pandemic is not unknown or unexpected. He is standing with open arms, waiting for you to be completely undone by His unchanging love. His glory is unparalleled; His promises, unchanging; His nature, wholly uncompromisable. And He is there, waiting and wanting for you to throw away all your un’s – the things that hold you back from release. He is longing for you to turn over to Him all the pieces of you that feel unloved and unhappy so He can make you new again.