I saw report on how the military was being mobilized to help in certain areas with the pandemic that we are all in. The news reporter was interviewing the military person and asked him how the military could respond to this, and he immediately answered: “We were made for this”.. What a great answer, we are not running from this pandemic, we are not focusing only on our own selves, he said, we were made for this. That is exactly what our response as the church of Jesus Christ needs to be in midst of this pandemic; “We were made for this!”.
I was reading an article on how the early church responded to the plague in Rome in the second century. Cyprian, the pastor at Carthage said “How suitable, how necessary it is that this plague and pestilence, which seems horrible and deadly, searches out the justice of each and every one and examines the mind of the human race”. What a powerful statement; the plague searches out and examines us! During the plagues of the Roman Empire, where over 5,000 people a day were dying, family members, friends, even doctors would abandon the sick, for fear of becoming contaminated. The ones who cared for the sick and dying were the believers, at great risk to their own health. So Cyprian said that the plague “examines us” whether our motivation is one of “self preservation” or one of “self- sacrifice”. It was exactly during this time, when the church rose up to care for the sick and dying that Christianity spread across the entire Roman Empire. Church; We were made for this!
Workers are saying:
“This is why God called us here”
Our daughter and son in law were contacted by their missions agency and told them and the other workers, that they could come back to the U.S. for a short time because of the very real danger. They took some time to fast and pray about their decision, and they responded to the agency (and to us also) “This is why God called us here”.
I am in constant contact with our missionaries, and many other missionaries as well. Many of our missionaries are on severe lockdown, where the government will not allow them out of their houses, and they are living in very chaotic situations. Also in many countries, they are blaming foreigners for bringing Coronavirus to their country, all foreigners. Some workers have had their windows broken by rocks, they are avoided and looked upon with suspicion as they go outside. Please pray for them in the midst of this pandemic.
Everyone was given the choice to return to the home country during this pandemic, and all have responded the same: “This is why God called us here.” They are ministering to the local people by way of social media, phone calls, texts, but also by taking food to needy families. Please remember to pray for them as they are serving God. If it is difficult for us, it is much, much more difficult for them during this time.
Church; “We may be in quarantine, but the Gospel is not quarantined!” The Gospel is being preached, people are coming to faith in Christ and following Him. Remember; “We were made for this!”