Behind the COVID numbers - fear and hopelessness

I’m going to go ahead and tread on some shaky ground.

 

Death

 

• Yes, 2020 will probably result in a record number of deaths in America, most likely as a result of this pandemic.
• Yes, people that are physically vulnerable, especially the elderly and those with respiratory issues, must be protected and ministered to in a variety of ways.
• Also, their are many people that are NOT at risk of dying, yet must be ministered to in unique ways as well, for each and every one of us has been affected by this pandemic.

So, without casting blame, but with the intent of helping us minister to more people through the gospel of Jesus Christ, I want to point out some numbers that we must not ignore.

 

This year, as of September 30, 1% of all Covid-related deaths have been people under 35, that’s 1,942 people. In 2018, the last year we have stats for suicide, there were 14,827 people in the same age group (under 35) that died from suicide.  All indications show that this number will go up this year because of the added stresses that 2020 has brought. 

 

So, by the end of 2020, it’s not a stretch to say that deaths by suicide in America for those under 35 will outnumber Covid-related deaths in the same age category 6:1!

 

According to rollcall.com . . .

The nation’s suicide rate reached historic highs prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, with rates at the highest levels since World War II. Economic and social pressures this year have heightened the risks, worrying experts, health officials and lawmakers.

Suicide mortality rates that were rising over the past two decades combined with the current pandemic are a “perfect storm,” found a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in April. Factors include economic stress, social isolation, reduced access to religious services, overall national anxiety, increased firearm sales and increases in health care provider suicides.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness HelpLine has seen a 65 percent increase in calls and emails since March, according to the organization, though it is not a crisis hotline.

 

By the way, an additional 10,000 in that same age group in 2018 were by homicide, another result of people desperate and angry and hopeless.  For the first half of 2020, the most conservative estimate is that homicides have increased 15% in the U.S. from 2019.

 

We cannot, as followers of Jesus Christ, determine our focus by what everybody else sees as important.  Yes, we need to be respectful of those around us by doing something as easy as putting on a mask.  Yet, we cannot allow the news of our culture or the different ideology of our neighbor shut us down from addressing a bigger need in our culture – fear and hopelessness.  Maybe Jesus will or won’t keep COVID from your house, maybe Jesus will or won’t provide for all of the material things and money issues you have.  Yet, He will, beyond any shadow of doubt, provide for your most important need – getting into a right relationship with Him so that your life will be lived to the full.  This means a life (including an eternal, heaven-bound life) that is full of His joy, His peace, His strength.  Couldn't we all agree at this point that we'll take those things even if it isn’t full of perfect health, all the money we want, or relationships that always work out perfectly.

 

If you are in a right relationship with your Creator, you ought to have a perspective of death that does NOT elicit fear and hopelessness, but a perspective of respect and a hopeful anticipation of eternity with Jesus forever.

 

If you are not in a right relationship with your Creator, get it right.  Just like we are told to “get your affairs in order” when we’re nearing the end of their life, it is appropriate, when we are thinking more about death, to get our affairs in order regarding our eternity.  Did you know that Jesus, the Son of God, died on the cross in your place so that you can know, for certain, that you have eternal life.  You can know, not because you’ve done the right things, but because you’ve trusted the right person and followed the right God.  Give your life to Jesus today and he will not only give you eternal life, but He will give you joy and peace right now, in the midst of whatever this world may become.

 

May our mission NOT be about mask policies, but about how 2020 has unmasked people's need for a Savior, for hope, for something (someone) solid.  

 

¹⁰ In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

¹⁷ By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. ¹⁹ We love because he first loved us.                                                                                    First John, Chapter 4

Covid-19 and the Lies that Abound

llustration #7 of how our current Covid-19 pandemic speaks to our even more real spiritual need:

Who can you trust with all of this information floating around? I mean, how many Covid-19 cases are there really? Is Covid-19 really a brand new virus or do we already have some protections for it? How much is the government keeping from us? Who really has our best interest in mind?

The ultimate question is, "Who is lying to us and why?"

If there truly is something going on that most of us are being duped on, there are two truths that will remain - they will be found out eventually and we still have control over our own outlook and attitude.

There are lies, though, that have been told for, well, forever.  We know that these are lies, that they are still being believed by the masses, and that we have a way to combat them. These lies are communicated through our adversary, the devil, who wants nothing else than our destruction. Just three simple examples and the truths that combat them:

1. Lie: You have no hope of forgiveness, you've messed up too much. Truth: In Jesus, there is offered to every human being the forgiveness of all your sins and the salvation of your souls.

2. Lie: God is not in control and/or is uninterested. Truth: God is sovereignly and perfectly knowledgeable about all that is going on, having a history of making good out of bad and drawing people to himself through patience and compassion.

3. Lie: What's best for you is to "be true to yourself." Truth: What's best for you is being true to who God has created you to be. It has been proven over time that the many forms of this falsity does not provide hope or satisfaction, whether it's in the form of sexual freedom, financial pursuits, or any kind of "look out for myself" focus.

For more information on the TRUTH in this post, see the extensive writings of the Apostle Paul and others in the Bible.  More specifically, Romans, chapter 3, Hebrews chapter 9, and 1 Thessalonians chapter 4.

Covid-19 and Returning to Normal?

Illustration #5 of how our current Covid-19 Pandemic speaks to our even more real spiritual need:

What will you return to?

Written now a month later than the last illustration, this illustration centers around the anticipation of lifting restrictions that have been in place for over a month. What are we most looking forward to? What are we anticipating in order to feel like things are “normal” again? Similar to someone returning from a foreign land and craving some sort of “taste of home”, we realize what we truly missed . . . and didn’t miss. 

With God, though, we’re never put in that position of being without what we truly need, for He never leaves us or forsakes us. When we know He's always there, though, we risk taking the Creator of the universe and the Lover of our souls for granted. Maybe you'd say, "He’s always with us in quarantine or in large gatherings, so why do I need to attend a worship service or even be a part of a church?"

Back to the illustration: How many of these “creature comforts” would you say we need? Anything that truly is necessary, including a relationship with God, will not be the things we naturally crave, so we need to figure out a way to keep them before us. Keep God’s Word before you, keep God’s people within reach, keep God Himself as your peace and comfort and refuge. #Psalm50

No matter how long you've been away you can always return to God


Illustration #6 - At what point is it "safe" to return to "life"?

The huge debate around MN is that we need to open things back up, at least to some degree.  I just saw a picture of friends that were celebrating Mother's Day IN a restaurant!!  What!? How dare they do that during this time!  At the same time, how envious I was of them doing this.😁  Now, it was in North Dakota, who has different restrictions than we do here in MN, so I shouldn't be too surprised.  Yet, what will MN do this coming week as the latest stay-at-home directive expires on Monday, May 18?  How will its citizen's respond?  Now, even Congress is considering legislation that would protect businesses from liability if they return to business and Covid-19 spreads through their actions.

This fact remains: life itself is a risk.  Every time we enter on on-ramp to a freeway or put money into an investment or even shake someone's hand, we are trusting that the other people on the freeway, handling our money, and touching our hand will do their part to, well, not harm us.  Whether it was before Covid-19 or now, none of us knew what each day would bring.  When we return to some sort of normalcy or a new normal, who can you trust?  Who will you trust?  God has given us two things that can bring us peace and joy in the midst of any kind of turbulence:  First, the ability to choose - nobody else can choose for you, though you can choose to allow others to influence you.  Second, to help with our tendency to allow others to choose for us, God has given us Himself.  Through his Word (#Psalm73, #wordsoflife) and through His Son Jesus Christ (see John 3:31-36), we have all we need for this life.  By receiving His witness, we receive His Spirit and, as a result, His peace, grace, joy, and life that is truly life.

It is never safe to return to life, but there's always safety in the arms of God.

Covid-19 and Getting the Right Information

Observation #3:  A seemingly inordinate amount of attention is given to something that causes way less deaths than Influenza A or even old age.  Why?
NOTE: This one comes with credit to Joe Williquette, a pastor friend of mine.

 
First, experts who know about viruses and microscopic organisms are telling us how serious this has been and could be. 

Second, the numbers don't lie - as of this morning there's been over 60,000 deaths and over one million cases in the U.S. alone (1 per 17 cases is ending in death) and the numbers are still growing.

Similarly, there is a movement and phenomenon called, "Biblical Christianity." Though it is based on a person, Jesus Christ, that hasn't walked on earth for 2000 years and though it is empowered by God and His Spirit, who cannot be seen, the numbers don't lie. Voice of the Martyrs just published a stat that the amount of Biblical Christians in China outnumber the amount of Communist Party members 100 million to 90 million. Not only that, but just do a quick search of the origins of the many humanitarian efforts that have started and continue over the centuries. Christians love others, serve others, and trust God through all sorts of life situations. The numbers don't lie. 

Trust Jesus today for your salvation, for it is BECAUSE we're saved that we do these things, not IN ORDER TO get saved. See Ephesians 2:1-10, John 14, or Romans 3:21-26 for more good stuff! #bygracethroughfaithyouaresaved

Observation #4:  I have found it refreshing to know where I can get good, reliable, information during this time of COVID-19. 

Though there are many reasons why a person may not be able to ALWAYS trust information coming from the "authorities," I would say it's irresponsible not to listen to CDC at a time when we so are so NEEDY of the right information. 

Similarly, if there is good, right, and life-saving information available regarding spiritual things and your eternity, wouldn't you do your best to do two things?
1. Make sure it's right information.
2. Listen to it.

This is what the God of creation has offered to us. Starting with Genesis 1:1 and "In the beginning God . . . ", continuing with Psalm 51 and what His forgiveness does and finishing with John 3:16 and the need to believe in Jesus for your salvation. We need RIGHT information. 

Make sure you're getting it and listening to it. Be safe. Stay at home. Be kind. Do no harm. Seek God first.

Covid-19 Hygienic Practices and Germiphobes - What We Can Learn

Observation #1: Most of us, I think it’s fair to say, have taken our “hygienic practices” to a new level recently. 

We’ve always known how germs spread but take more action now because of the threat to ourselves or even to the more vulnerable around us. 

Similarly, many do not address their spiritual need until it’s either too late or until they’ve spent most of their life ignoring it. I'm sure you've felt something like this: that inner sense that there’s got to be more to this life or that feeling like there’s something else that you need. Well, my friends, that inner emptiness is something you were born with and it can only be cured, or filled, or remedied, with Jesus. 

Let me ask you, is it sillier to quarantine yourself for two weeks or even two months in order to keep yourself a much less risk to get or spread a virus that has a 3-5% chance of killing you OR is it sillier to ignore God, your creator, at this moment and risk losing your very soul? Read John 3:31-36 and Romans 5:6-11. 

Believe today.

Observation #2: I have a friend who is a self-professed germophobe. I asked him about how our current COVID-19 situation is effecting him and his answer surprised me. 

He said that he's actually more calm than normal because, now, many other people understand him and are on his same "level." His desire for cleanliness and his fear of what germs can do have been justified, at least to some degree. 

Similarly, those who live out, day-to-day, the truth about who Jesus is, what He did for us, and what He offers each human being, will someday be seen as RIGHT. One day "every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of of God the Father" (Philippians 2:10). 

Be that self-professing Jesus follower, maybe you will be instrumental in saving others from their spiritual uncleanliness, once they realize their need.