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.

Voting and living . . . mutually exclusive?

It's Super Tuesday, the day after Leap Day, which also means that I get to enjoy another every-fourth-year activity - The Summer Olympics.  What do all of these things have in common besides all happening on the same year?  For our purposes here, they all offer a different view regarding what matters more:

1.  Having the right president.
2.  Showing up respectfully, on the international stage of athletics.
3.  Using our time wisely.

America was founded on principles of government which has checks and balances and has an organization that requires cooperation.  On top of all of that, every single person must do their part in order for America to be what American was meant to be - a truly diverse conglomeration of people all working together to create a place of mutual respect, under the hand of Almighty God.  Even if not everybody believes in God or even the same thing about God, the foundation must be respected, for there is no other foundation on which mutual respect can be built.

First, in full disclosure, I'm not even a citizen, yet.  Born in Canada to Canadian parents, I've lived in America since I was 4 years old and have no plans of leaving.  My convictions, though, are very American, because my wife and six kids are American and I pastor a congregation that votes and lives fully in America.  Mostly, though, I love the fact that we have a pretty good system of voting in leaders fairly often, thus revealing where we're at as a culture.  What do we see as important?  Where do most of this think we should be heading?  Well, we answer these questions by how we vote and, for better or for worse, we have to live with our decisions.  This is where the LIVING and VOTING come in.

Back to voting.  Maybe you have already written me off because I haven't chosen to become a citizen by now.  You have a right to do that, yet my influence on this country, or even in my little part of this country, is not dependent on whether I can vote, whether I vote, or, dare I say, who I vote for.  My influence is dependent on how I prepare those around me  and whether I'm faithful to my God when a friend asks me, as I enter the local coffee shop, "So, Paul, how should a Stearns County Evangelical vote?"

Voting steps to follow:
1. Know what you believe and why.
2. Know the candidates and what they believe.
3. Vote appropriately.

How Christian living intersects with voting:
1.  Be aware of your culture and why people vote how they do.
2.  Love and respect each and every person around you, just as Jesus would.
3.  Submit to the authority that is voted in, even if you didn't vote for them.
4.  Speak of Jesus, often and accurately, even if it turns out to be illegal.

The latter of the two lists, by far, requires the most energy and thought and conversation.

May I submit to you that, even though voting is necessary and important, living out what is behind our voting convictions matters immensely more than even convincing somebody to vote a certain way (or NOT a certain way).

Real change happens beyond simply "liking" our chosen candidate.  It requires living out our convictions, no matter who wins, whether our candidate is all they said they would be, or even whether our belief in Jesus Christ is poo-pooed by most of our country.

Be faithful in your vote.  Don't put much hope in the results.  Our hope is in the Lord.

World, what will I do with you?

From tyrannical leaders in Africa and an 11-year old getting the death sentence in Pakistan to Americans turning a deaf ear to more deaths in Afghanistan while dealing with needless deaths of young people seemingly every day.  Nothing makes real sense any more.  What about the fact that solid, sensical, biblical standards are being treated like garage sale clothes ("they don't fit" or "they're out of style")?

Is there any hope any more?  What do we do with all of this disturbing news and trying issues?  The way I see it from my limited perspective, it seems that we have one of four responses:

• Ignore it and live in our own little world.
• Escape it through pursuing pleasures.
• Combat it by using all our resources to make it better.
• Embrace it by submitting to the Higher Authority.

However you choose to live your life in this world, it'd be best to know how you will deal with all the crud that goes on.  If you choose to live in your own world, you can claim ignorance, be happy in it, and hope for the best.  Can we really live in a bubble, though?  Can we CHOOSE to not be affected by what's going on around us?  Good luck with that.

The second option is similar to the first, but instead of choosing ignorance, your choosing numbness.  Overloading your world with so much busyness, pleasure, and/or addictions that there's no time or energy to think about what's going on.  Are you ready to ignore your most important relationships?  Are you ready to accept the consequences of putting all your eggs in the "what the world has to offer" basket?  Please don't trust the world with all that.

Third, you could get into politics, social movements, or devote yourself to philanthropic adventures with the noble intentions of making the world better.  Though this sounds like a great option, certainly more satisfying than the first two, it is dependent on a wishy washy element - YOU!  Don't get me wrong, I'm certainly a wishy washy element as well - we all are.  Plus, WHEN we fall short, how do you get up again and put your whole heart into another effort.

Finally, I suggest that we each realize that all of this crud is part of the package that comes with living in this world, on this side of heaven.  Again, we're not giving up or helplessly fighting it, but we are submitting to God Almighty, doing His bidding, and leaving the results to Him.  Rather than fixing the whole system, we're giving hope to those broken by the system.  This hope is that the love of Christ came into the world, rescued us from the world's crud, and is still alive and well inside all followers of Jesus Christ.

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.  He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.  But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.  The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.  2 Peter 3:9,10

Take Heart!  This world is not all there is - something much better is coming.  In the meantime, join the One who has all the answers and give your life to Jesus Christ.