Another day of self isolating in COVID-19 world, which means another confession. As I said, I have no shortage of things to confess.  Today’s confession is probably shared by many, especially small children, I would think.  And it is simply this – I confess I am not all that fond of Halloween as a holiday.

Now before you rush to put me in the same category as the infamous Grinch, take a moment to consider.  I am not saying I am opposed to candy and costumes, princess gowns and power ranger gear.  I think it is the masks that have always made me uneasy, even scared at times, if I am being honest.  (and that’s what confession’s all about, right? – being honest)

So given that information, you can see why this whole “everybody wear a mask everywhere thing” because of COVID -19, is a bit unnerving when experienced in places that have typically been just run of the mill, everyday places of interaction, like the grocery store.

At certain worksites or in a hospital, masks are a part of the expected work uniform.  Therefore masks don’t seem all that unusual or out of place in those contexts.  But I am not used to seeing many masked people walking around in my local food store, when I run a routine errand.  Suddenly an everyday outing has morphed and mutated before my eyes into something else entirely – something vaguely sinister and mysterious and unrecognizable.

Why unrecognizable?  After having a recent “twilight zone” food shopping experience (I clarify that, although there is no other shopping experience available except online, as all other types of stores are closed) I began to question what I was feeling.  I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

I felt that the experience was so different from pre-COVID-19 shopping experiences that I could hardly recognize it as the same thing I did before the virus.  Then it hit me, it was the people I didn’t recognize.  The store was the same (except for the empty shelves) but who were all these masked people?

How do we recognize people primarily?  By their faces!  Hair cuts and color change constantly, clothes change daily (hopefully) our bodies change over time but – when all else has changed, if I can look someone in the face, even someone I have not seen in awhile, it is their face that looks familiar to me.  It is their face that I recognize.

I literally walked right by a dear friend at Meijer just a few days ago.  She called out to me and I turned around, recognizing the voice but for an instant, not the masked figure before me.  She was wearing  a lovely designer mask that actually matched her stylish jacket.  We were able to have some much needed mask to face conversation (ok, there’s tomorrow’s confession, my mask was in my pocket, I was not wearing it because the store was not crowded at all)

So we had our warm, socially distant conversation, catching up and encouraging one another.  It was all I could do not to reach out and hug her, but I would never want to give anyone cause for alarm.  (sidenote- hugs were formerly a source of comfort, now they are cause for concern, a source of fear, yet another casualty of the COVID-19)

So I realized, it is the not seeing of peoples’ faces that gives an air of unreality and of surrealism to otherwise everyday situations and places where we have been accustomed to coming and going before the COVID-19.  The masking of our faces makes all the difference.

The masking of our faces fills us with fear.  Requiring the use of masks ensures that we will remain fearful.  Each mask is a visible signal and a visual reminder to each of us, everywhere we look, seeing ourselves surrounded by masked figures, we receive the unspoken message that something is not right, that something here is dangerous, that we should be afraid for our lives, that we have put ourselves in jeopardy just by being here – just by running this once routine errand.

I don’t know who is behind the mask.  Friend or foe?  What a difference a smile makes!  And our smiles are hidden behind masks ironically at a time when we all could use a smile or two, even from a complete stranger.  With everyone masked, I felt I had walked into a world of strangers.

It was a world of strangers.  It was a world of silence.  It was my local grocery!  It was eerie.  It was unfamiliar until I ran into my friend (not literally) and heard her voice.  Something or someone familiar in this new environment brought to us all by COVID-19.

We carry our countenance in our faces.  Our faces reveal our identity.  (why do you think criminals wear masks?  to hide their identities, of course)  We were created for the face to face, not the mask to mask or even the zoom to zoom.  I guess that’s why it is called Facebook and Facetime  etc.

As a self isolator, I find myself longing for the face to face with family and friends of the pre-COVID-19 days.  I long for what it says in 1 Corinthians 13:12,

“Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.  Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”

I also love this promise to look forward to in Revelation 22:3-5,

“No longer will there be any curse.  The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and His servants will serve Him.  They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads.  There will be no more night.  They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light.”

And I love this one about our faces from 2 Corinthians 3:18,

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into His likeness from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

Yes, there is something special, something sacred about the face to face encounter.

“It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your face, for You loved them.”  (Psalm 44:3)

“The Lord said to Moses, ‘Tell Aaron and his sons, This is how you are to bless the Israelites.  Say to them: The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.’ ”    (Numbers 6:22-26)

I guess that would be today’s prayer for all of you, dear readers, “may the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”

sincerely,     Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

it started with a phone call.  I made the call, setting in motion the chain of events which would inevitably follow.  I received my instructions and hung up.  At the agreed upon time, I drove to my destination and pulled into the small, practically empty parking lot.  There was a truck a couple spaces away from my car and another car in the corner of the lot, but that was it.

Taking a deep breath, I pulled out my phone and made the call as instructed. Then I waited, not sure what to do next.  It was a warm, sunny day so I got out of my car, deciding to enjoy the fresh air while I waited.  I could not see through the glare on the truck’s windows, so I didn’t know if someone sat in that truck or not.

It was then that I saw the gowned, gloved, masked figure silently, steadily making its way toward me.  This mysterious figure carried a fairly large bag in one hand. That must be it, I thought.  What to do?  Should I get back into my car?  Before I had time to act on that option, the figure was before me, extending the hand holding the bag.  Should I take it?  My mind raced – my body froze.

I had thought my contact would set the bag down and walk away, leaving it for me to retrieve after they had vanished back into the building.  We should not be seen together.  We should not share the same space, no matter how big a space it might be.  Had I jeopardized the entire operation by exiting my car without warning or permission?  Confronted with the outstretched arm dangling the bag before me, I felt I had no choice but to reach out and to accept the bag.

I quickly returned to my car, even as the gowned, gloved, masked figure retreated out of sight.  No words had been exchanged.  I breathed a sigh of relief that the encounter was behind me now, the mission completed, as I glanced around for possible onlookers before leaving the parking lot with the bag safely beside me in the car.

What must you be thinking by now, dear readers?  That I have turned to a life of crime or perhaps of top secret espionage?  Would it disappoint you to know the truth about this event?  Unbelievable as it seems, I have not been describing a drug deal or some top secret, undercover mission for our government.  I am not actively engaged in espionage of any kind.

The time to confess has come – I was buying cat food from my local veterinarian. Yes, my cat can’t eat the regular, run of the mill stuff.  She is on a prescription diet, available only from my/her veterinarian.  Quite a let down isn’t it?  From high stakes, top secret dealings to the reality of simply buying food for my pet, is one big step down, isn’t it?

But only during such a strange time in history as this, could something so simple as buying cat food resemble a high stakes, undercover operation.  It is beyond imagination when I think of how a deal like this would normally “go down.”

I would stop by the vets’ on my way home from work and wait my turn to speak to the receptionist in the waiting room.  I would place my order as he/she asked how my cat was doing.  We would talk about that and other things as I petted Tom or Jerry or any of the other “live in” cats that usually milled about the waiting room. I would check out the fish in the fountain/pond thing (along with the cats) and chat with whoever happened to be waiting with their pet to see the doctor.

I never failed to meet interesting dogs and cats and their owners, and sometimes get to hear their stories, while I waited for my order to be filled.  It was always good to see the people that work there, as they become like family over time.  I would leave having made some new animal friends and having filled my cat’s prescription for her special diet.  No stress, just an everyday encounter with other people and their pets, swapping stories and telling “pet tales.”

As you can see, that past pet food purchase experience bears no resemblance to the high stakes encounter I just had with the mysterious, masked, gowned and gloved figure with whom I dealt today.  No wonder I felt I had entered an alternate universe.  No wonder I felt oddly unsettled after my routine errand, that was anything but routine.  Nothing was remotely familiar about today’s experience.

And therein lies the problem.  COVID-19 restrictions have stripped away from all of us our familiar, comfortable, daily routines and ways of interacting with each other.  It is a strange, stressful new world out there.  I think PTSD  will be much more widespread than the corona virus in the days to come.  We have yet to realize the high price we are paying.  I wonder if anyone is working on a PTSD vaccine?

We desire a return to our old, pre-COVID-19 world.  But we have a better world to look forward to in our future.  1 Corinthians 2:9 tells us, “However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him-‘ “.

Likewise, we read in Revelation 21:1, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.”

Better days are coming  . . .

“Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

sincerely,       Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

it was an eerie emptiness that engulfed me as I entered in, surprising me even though the normally full parking lot was nearly empty, providing me a preview of what I could expect to encounter inside.  Still, I confess to you now, dear readers, for a moment I did not recognize this once familiar place.  My mind wandered back to the last time, not so long ago, that I had been here.  The lines had been long, business brisk, people coming and going, talking back and forth as they waited their turn.

I think it was the silence that seemed so out of place at first, but the place itself bore little resemblance to what I remembered from just a couple weeks ago. Bright yellow “caution” tape, reminding me of a crime scene, seemed to be everywhere.  On the floor it was placed at intervals, indicating where people were supposed to stand while waiting their turn in line.  Only there were no other customers today, just me.

As I looked up from the crime scene tape on the floor, my mind couldn’t immediately make sense of what I was seeing.  More crime scene tape ran across the entire front of the counter, from one side of the room to the other.  At first I wasn’t sure if anyone was on the other side of that counter.  A large, clear plastic tarp hung from the ceiling to the counter top, from one side of the room to the other.

Maybe it was the glare of the ceiling lights on the plastic divider, or maybe it was the pattern of the rectangles on the clear plastic or maybe it was because the tarp wasn’t anchored down at the bottom but hung freely, allowing it to sway slightly and to buckle just a bit –  perhaps it was all these things in combination, that made it difficult for me to discern at first glance if indeed there were any people on the other side of the counter, ready to wait on customers.  (side note – why do they call it “waiting on customers”  when it is the customer who typically does the “waiting”?  as in “take a number and wait for the next available representative, customer service specialist etc.)

I had walked into a world of eerie silence and crime scene tape, empty of any human beings it seemed, until I realized there was a person behind the counter, hidden behind the tarp and she would help me mail my package.  A barrier of sorts had been formed using the bright yellow tape and carts placed between customer and counter, ensuring that I, along with everyone else, would keep my social distance while also providing a place on which to set the credit card machine necessary to complete the transaction.

It all worked very well, it just didn’t seem real.  Yes, I am describing my trip today to the post office, not an undercover mission in a war zone.  Although, the masks do add a heightened sense of mystery, danger, fear and intrigue to any otherwise routine and dare I say mundane errand to any place of everyday business.

Maybe that’s what I couldn’t quite put my finger on – people didn’t fill the places where I went today – fear did.  Fear has taken over and settled in.  She doesn’t leave much room for people to enter into the places where they formerly hung out.  Yesterday I wrote about the world outside my window, today I experienced the world outside my neighborhood, which I don’t see unless I leave my home and go out into it.  Two worlds, so close and yet so different.  Today I crossed that fine line I referenced yesterday.

Will COVID-19 conquer the world?  The answer to that question was given long before COVID-19 ever made its appearance here.  In Isaiah 46:9-11 we read,

“I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me.  I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come.  I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.    . . .   What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do.”

“Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere Him.  For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.  The Lord foils the plans of the nations; He thwarts the purposes of the peoples.  But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations.” (Psalm 33:8-11)

” ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.  Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.’ ”   (Jeremiah 29:11-12)

Yes, my Heavenly Father has a plan and His plans are always good and His plans always prevail.  Always.  Even over COVID-19.  Especially over COVID-19.  We have much to look forward to when our hope is in our Creator God.

“Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them.  They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”   (Revelation 21:3-4)

sincerely,      Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

there’s a whole big world out there, right outside my window – and it looks the same today as it has for all of the twenty some years I have watched it from my window.  I watch them go by all day long, a constant parade of people, passing by right before my eyes as I sit at my computer.  It is the same parade I watched yesterday, this parade of people I see passing by my window today, and I expect I will witness this same parade of people all over again tomorrow.  This expectation brings with it a comfort all its own.

The world outside my window is a familiar, unchanging view of life going on around me, being lived out in the daily routines that make up our lives.  There are the usual dog walkers at the usual times, I recognize the dogs even if I do not know their owners.  Then there are the joggers and the bicycle riders coming and going throughout the day.  One particular bike rider is so familiar and predictable that her absence would be conspicuous.  There are moms pushing strollers and couples walking hand in hand.  There are families with children on tricycles trailing behind their parents or kids on bikes and strollers and dogs all together.  And then there is my friend, the faithful all weather walker.  Her presence completes the picture of neighbors known and unknown passing before my window.

And of course, I myself, am a part of that daily parade when I take my morning or evening walk or ride my bike.  Other people can watch me from their window.  We are all a part of this same neighborhood.  This is the world outside my window and this world has not changed.

But I know the world has changed, even though I would never know that, based on the world I see outside my window.  When I turn on the local news and see my own city, I do not recognize it.  Why?  Because I have been home as ordered, (essential travel only) and I have not gone out to see for myself how the world has changed.  Many are working harder and longer than ever before and I am so grateful for their service to us all.  Truckers, cashiers, store stockers, all health care workers, police, fire, first responders, scientists working to find tests and treatments, food distribution workers –  we owe so much to so many, – it is hard to be home when so many are working so hard.

I do not recognize the empty shelves, empty streets, empty stores, empty parks, closed businesses and masked people I see on my TV screen.  It hardly seems real. The normal and the abnormal existing in such close proximity to each other, such a fine line separating the two worlds.

I want to bridge the gap between the two worlds.  I want to hang onto anything that is a reminder of what normal was but at the same time, I need to know how to live in this new reality.  I want to remember how we lived in a pre-COVID-19 world.  But I have to learn to walk in this world we have now.

I will find a way.  We will all find a way.  Jesus told His disciples, “In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world.”  (John 16:33)

The day will come when I will say along with the Psalmist, “You turned my wailing into dancing; You removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to You and not be silent.  O Lord my God, I will give You thanks forever.” (Psalm 30:11-12)

Above all, I will remember these words of Paul in his letter to the believers in Rome who were living in very challenging circumstances, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”   (Romans 8:37-39)

nothing can separate me, nothing can separate you, from God’s love for us – not even COVID-19!

sincerely,      Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

Not!  If you are familiar with the classic children’s book, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” then you already know how this story will end.  The COVID-19 can no more steal Easter from us than the Grinch could succeed in stealing Christmas from all those Whos down in Who-ville.  Some things just can’t be done.  And stealing/defeating Easter is one of those things.  Not even the dreaded COVID-19 virus of 2020 is any kind of a match for the empty tomb!

The Grinch did succeed in stealing a whole lot of stuff from all those Whos, but Christmas still came.  It came without trees and trinkets and treats.  Likewise, Easter is here, arriving this morning, right on time – without bonnets and bunnies and baskets.  Those things are the trappings of Easter, but they are not Easter.

The cross and the empty tomb – that’s Easter,  or Resurrection Sunday as it is more accurately called.  The cross has not lost its power and the tomb remains empty to this day, because death was defeated once for all time on that very first Easter and nothing has changed since then, the tomb is still empty, death is still defeated.

Today, on this Easter day of 2020, we witness this virus of death attempting to take over a day that has always been a celebration of life.  COVID-19 is no match for Easter and we will experience that truth today, each in our own way.  Whether we “attend” church online, walk out into God’s wonderful world, or reach out to friends and neighbors in encouragement, the message of Easter is that life wins out over death in the end.

So, how ironic that today, on this day which has always been a celebration of eternal life in Christ, we have been engaging Death in a dual to the death and wondering who will win – COVID-19 or mankind?  All around the globe, the COVID-19 virus has been terrorizing  people in every nation, filling them with fear. Borders are closed around the world as people shelter in place, attempting to hide themselves from this enemy, perceived as all powerful.

In Matthew 10:28, Jesus told His disciples, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.  Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

COVID-19 can kill the body, but it cannot kill the soul!  It is a virus and like all other physical diseases, its power is limited to our physical bodies, it cannot touch our eternal souls.  The empty tomb of Easter is our guarantee.

In Hosea 13:14 we learn of God’s plan to rescue us from death, put into place so long ago; “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death.  Where, O death, are your plagues?  Where, O grave, is your destruction?”

Paul encouraged the believers at Corinth with these words in 1 Corinthians 15:53-56, “For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.  When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’  Where, O death, is your victory?  Where, O death, is your sting?  The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.  But thanks be to God!  He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

This morning, I witnessed a bank of pure white, huge billowing clouds stretched out across an otherwise empty clear blue sky.  I could not tear my eyes away from the simple brilliance of what was before me.  Those clouds looked ready to receive royalty, they seemed to be waiting expectantly for the triumphal entry of the risen Savior, Jesus.  Those clouds know what day this is!

“Look, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of Him.  So shall it be!  Amen.”   (Revelation 1:7)

“At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.  And He will send His angels and gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.”   (Mark 13:26-27)

Today is Easter and COVID-19 has no power to change that.  The churches may be empty on this Sunday which usually sees them filled with more people than at any other time, but the tomb is empty too and nothing can keep the celebration of eternal life in Christ from taking place today. I noticed violets growing up through cracks in the cement sidewalk today.  Not even concrete could stop life from springing up out of the earth!

And so it is with the celebration of the empty tomb that is Easter.  All creation is praising God today and we are invited to join in with them.  We are invited to celebrate once again Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, triumphing over death, leaving the tomb empty and powerless.

“The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.  He is not here; He has risen, just as He said.  Come and see the place where He lay.  Then go quickly and tell His disciples; He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee.  There you will see Him. Now I have told you.’ ”   (Matthew 28:5-7)

Jesus, come back to life from the dead, defeating death, leaving the tomb empty, alive and sitting at the Father’s right hand making intercession for us continually, this is why we celebrate Easter.  I especially like the words in Isaiah 25:6-9, which talk about death’s defeat and our God’s salvation –

“On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine – the best of meats and the finest of wines.  On this mountain He will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; He will swallow up death forever.  The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; He will remove the disgrace of His people from all the earth.  The Lord has spoken.  In that day they will say, ‘Surely this is our God; we trusted in Him, and He saved us.  This is the Lord, we trusted in Him; let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.’ ”

Yes, “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”  (Psalm 118:24)

Rejoice!  the tomb is empty!  He is risen!  Jesus Christ is risen indeed!

sincerely,      Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, another day, another dollar – well, not for millions of people now out of work because of the government shutdown of our private businesses due to this virus. They tell us it’s for our own good or maybe it’s for the greater good?  Either way, not a lot of good is forthcoming from it.  Increases in poverty, hunger, illness, homelessness, domestic abuse, suicide, depression, alcohol consumption, lack of access to medical care and to education and to safe places with schools, libraries, churches and shelters closed, have resulted from the rising numbers of people who no longer have jobs to go to.

For all of us, well most of us, our circumstances have been in a free fall of everchanging edicts and information which bombard us all day long.  This brings me to today’s confession – I do not like roller coasters, never have.  In fact, I am terrified of them.  I get motion sick in a car, so it is understandable that the motion of even the most tame roller coaster would be something I would not ever want to subject myself to.  I mean, riding roller coasters is considered an amusement, (must be why we find them in amusement parks) something people do for fun.

Riding roller coasters is an optional activity, which would explain why I never choose to ride them.  But now I find myself on a daily roller coaster ride and I can’t get off.  (I don’t remember agreeing to get on, for that matter)  But nevertheless, here I am, along for the ride and I imagine most of you are on this roller coaster with me.

It is the COVID-19 roller coaster and it will leave you hanging on for dear life.  Now I know that not too many posts back I said I was in a dark tunnel.  So which is it? Am I in the COVID-19 tunnel?  or am I riding the COVID-19 roller coaster?  Let me tell you, dear readers, it is both simultaneously!

How can this be?  The roller coaster is in the tunnel!  Yes, it’s true.  Under normal circumstances I think they call this the Space Mountain ride at Disney’s Magic Kingdom.  People actually wait in long lines and pay money to ride a roller coaster in the dark.  But these are not normal circumstances.  And I did not sign up for this!  I know you didn’t either.  None of us did.

We are on a wild ride and we can’t get off.  Not yet, anyway.  It’s a roller coaster of emotions and of circumstances.  Up and down, up and down, with no level ground in between.  Fear plunges me downward faster than I can catch a breath, then from that lowest point, hope beckons me upward, only to vanish as I reach out for her, plunging me swiftly down again into despair faster than before.

Each time the “finish line” is moved farther from me, another twist in this roller coaster ride throws me for “a loop.”  And there have been a lot of loops already. Schools were going to reopen May 1st, then they weren’t.  Instead of restrictions being lifted, restrictions have continued to be added and increased.   I thought everything that could be closed was closed.  But at my state’s daily briefings, often new closures are announced, such as parks, playgrounds and golf courses.

The Corona numbers change hourly and there are so many of them.  As they increase, fear increases along with them.  Circumstances around me are changing hourly as well, with state briefings and white house briefings and other news briefings in between as the roller coaster ride continues.  Even if I don’t watch the briefings, the changes in current restrictions announced there, still apply to me – where I am allowed to go and not allowed to go, etc.  (I can shut my eyes and hold my ears on the roller coaster, but I am still on the roller coaster)

Who will rescue me from this roller coaster ride?  Psalm 40:1-2 gave me the answer,

“I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry.  He lifted me out of the slimy pit, (off of the roller coaster) out of the mud and mire;  He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.”

Oh, to stand firm and still!  “Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; may Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.”   (Psalm 143:10)

rescued from the roller coaster by my Heavenly Father, I will rejoice and say –

“My feet stand on level ground; in the great assembly I will praise the Lord.”  (Psalm 26:12)

sincerely,     Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Being a self isolator gives me plenty of time to reflect, plenty of time to ponder and plenty of time for the confession of many things.  Today’s confession is no cause for shame, it is just a fact.  I confess, I never really liked math all that much.  I mean math’s all about the numbers, right?  And numbers can be confusing if you ask me.  So I was never very good at math.  Was that because I didn’t like it or did I not like math because I wasn’t good at it?  This is the classic chicken or the egg dilemma, which has no answer.

I also have no answer for all the numbers connected with COVID-19 that I see daily on the news.  Numbers can be confusing.  They say numbers don’t lie. Maybe they don’t, but people do lie and sometimes they use numbers to do their dirty work for them.

We are shown numbers every night on the news (really 24/7), a running tally of deaths due to COVID-19.  Surrounding that are numbers of newly identified cases, numbers tested, numbers admitted to hospitals . . .  where are the recovery numbers?  Even though the death count has been rising, the mortality rate has been going down.  That’s a secret the numbers could share with us if we would look more closely at them.

Jesus said in John 8:32, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  This is true for more than just spiritual matters.  We can’t make good decisions for ourselves and for our communities if we don’t know what is fiction and what is fact – what is true and what is false.

Some truths are harder to hear than others, but that doesn’t mean we should turn our backs on those truths and pretend they do not exist.  What are the numbers telling us.  What about the number 46,438?  That’s the worldwide number of deaths from COVID-19 from January 1 through April 1 2020.  That’s a big number right?  No wonder all these drastic measures that have never before been imposed on a population of free people are now being implemented.  Drastic times call for drastic measures, right?

I mean, no one wants people to die, do they?  Something has to be done.  So imagine my surprise when I saw this next number for the same time period of January 1 through April 1.  That number is 121,993 – the number of seasonal flu deaths which have been occurring at literally the same time we have been counting COVID-19 deaths. (and that’s with a vaccine)  Why haven’t those death counts been given to me at every news cast – morning, noon and night?   Don’t I need to know this information as well so that I can protect myself and those I love?

Ok, so 121,993 is definitely a bigger number than the 46,438 COVID-19 deaths, right?  Actually, the flu deaths are more than twice the COVID-19 deaths, but apparently that is not deemed important.  Who decides what is important information for us to know and what is not important for us to know?

Here’s a truth that surprised me.  Worldwide suicide deaths for this same time period (which is this current year, 2020) are 269,076.  I guess you can see for yourself that number is more than five times the number of COVID-19 deaths for the same time period?

The numbers may be speaking but no one is listening.  Here are some numbers I had not heard before, but then the media doesn’t deem it necessary for me to know them.  Traffic deaths for this same time period – 338,715 people.  Alcohol – 627,571 deaths; from smoking – 1,254,352 deaths just in these same months of January through end of March.

Are these numbers speaking to you?  These deaths in each category far outweigh the COVID-19 deaths for the exact same time period.  Yet we are still allowing the sale of alcohol and of cigarettes (they must be deemed essential services/businesses is all I can conclude from this) all the while taxing them to make money.  Isn’t this profiting from something we know without a doubt (according to the numbers, and numbers don’t lie) causes many times over the number of deaths that COVID-19 is currently causing?

How can this be?  We shut down an entire free society in the name of preventing death while continuing in the sale of alcohol and tobacco products, which cause exponentially more deaths than the virus we are claiming to fight.  Something is not adding up here.  I said I was not good with numbers, but some of you are, dear readers.  So see what sense you can make of the following numbers.

Deaths from hunger for this same time period in 2020 are 2,806,314.  How can this be?  Where is the outrage?  Where is the hourly death count on my TV screen? That is a death count sixty times higher than the count from this virus.  I don’t understand at all.

People are dying every day.  From illnesses,  from suicide,  from car accidents, from alcohol, from smoking, from hunger,  . . . the list is longer but the reality is that we have never in the past restricted people’s freedoms, closed their places of worship, closed their places of business, closed their schools and their libraries and forbid them to leave their homes – and yet death and its myriad causes has always been with us as a society.

Why now?  Where was the outrage when people were not getting their children properly immunized against measles, leading to multiple outbreaks after it had all but been eradicated?  This current reaction to COVID-19 couched in concern for the elderly and those with underlying conditions, doesn’t add up – the numbers don’t add up.  Take a look at one last number.

Ten million, six hundred sixty five thousand, one hundred thirty (10,665,130) deaths due to abortion worldwide during this same time period.  I don’t know that I have adequate words to put the magnitude of that loss of human life into perspective.  I will just let the number speak to you for itself.  Hopefully you will listen and hear the truth the numbers are telling us each and every day.

I said I was not a numbers person.  But I have to heed the numbers and learn from them what they would reveal to me.  They are telling me something is not right. Suicide and hunger are killing so many more people than the virus is right now. And ironically, it is suicide and hunger along with alcohol consumption that are on the rise as a direct result of all the shut down orders, closing businesses, thereby putting many people out of work.

We are told it is for the common good.  Is it?  If it were the common good, we wouldn’t allow the sale of alcohol or cigarettes because those numbers are way higher than the COVID-19 numbers.  And at every news briefing we are told we have to wait on the virus numbers to come down.  What about all the other higher numbers?  (including the economic numbers)  Don’t they matter?

Don’t we get to decide that?  If my church is open, I don’t have to attend.  Or if I choose to attend, I don’t have to shake hands or hug someone if I am afraid.  The media has filled us with fear, and with guilt.  If we don’t do what they say, then obviously, we are not compassionate, we want people to die.  We want our own elderly relatives to die, if we don’t do what they say.

Aren’t local businesses capable of figuring out for themselves how to protect their customers, by instituting new protocols if necessary.  If things open back up, I am not required to go there but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be open for people who do want to come.  We can wash our hands, social distance and have our daily lives back again in the bargain.  It is not either/or,  we can do both.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”  (Declaration of Independence)

All life is to be valued and protected, including the ten million plus that lost their lives to abortion in the last three months.  Life is of value on both ends of the spectrum.  We can keep our nursing homes closed to visitors and open up our businesses simultaneously.  We should not put people out of work, deny children a public education, deny individuals the right to assemble for worship, close our parks and our museums all under the disguise of saving lives.

We have already seen by the numbers that loss of life is a daily occurrence that has never before been compounded by the additional hardships that forced joblessness brings with it.  At a time when we need each other the most, we are being told to isolate ourselves.  And remember, the newscasters that are telling us it is too soon to go back, they still have their jobs,  their incomes and their daily routines.  They are making rules for the rest of us.

Each local community can use common sense and compassion to guide them in coping with this virus as well as in coping with other challenges, (such as flu, hunger, alcohol and drug addiction, suicide etc.) that affect much greater numbers of our population.

They are telling us to look at the numbers.  If we were truly looking at the numbers, all the numbers, not just the numbers they want us to focus on, we would be deciding differently for ourselves than they are deciding for us.

Life is precious.  No one wants anyone to die.  Which brings me to my final number.  One hundred percent.

“And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  (Acts 2:21)

“Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God-”   (John 1:12)

“For My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”   (John 6:40)

sincerely,       Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s confession is not such a surprising one.  It is simply that I think I am feeling sad.  Why not sure?  Well, sadness has to compete with fear and anger right now, so it doesn’t always get recognized or acknowledged.  Fear has been front and center for awhile now, if the TV is on for any length of time, anyone would be filled with more than enough fear to keep them home and under the covers for quite awhile.  (which fits in nicely with the orders we have been given not to leave home)

Then there’s anger.  Anger is a natural reaction to having things systematically taken from us over a short period of time.  Feeling more and more restricted in where we can go and what we can do has left us angry and feeling helpless.  Once the anger subsides, it is then that sadness has a chance to make herself known. She has been with me all along, but I have been too busy being scared or being mad, to have time to pay her any attention.

But today, I had to acknowledge that I am sad.  I have not spent much time in fear because of my faith.  And anger is exhausting and pointless and for me, passes quickly.  When those two are stripped away, I am finally left alone, face to face with my sadness.  Sometimes my sadness is for myself, most times it is for others that I know and love and for all those I don’t even know but identify with because we are all one race, the human race.

There is a lot of loss going on right now, but no time to grieve as we are still in the process of loss.  The losses are still continuing.  Loss of lives, loss of freedoms, loss of daily routines, loss of work, loss of time spent with others, loss of travel long planned, loss of events long looked forward to (weddings, graduations, sporting events like the Olympics – the list would be endless)

It is hard to grasp, because it is so global.  Loss is being experienced by so many, in so many different ways, that it is hard to know what to grieve or when to grieve or how to grieve.  Do we even dare to grieve when so many are losing so much?  Are we allowed to grieve the lesser losses?  (if there is such a thing?)

Usually, when we experience a loss, whether the death of a family member or a divorce (the death of a marriage) or the loss of a job, which brings with it the loss of income, daily purpose, perhaps status and identity – in all these we have other people to come around us and support us in our time of loss and grief.

Right now that is not possible in the traditional sense.  Funerals cannot be held for loved ones.  Funerals typically provide closure and support for those grieving their loss as others physically come along side them and share in celebrating the life lost and share in saying goodbye.  This shared experience provides an enormous amount of comfort to the grieving family.

So now the loss is double, they have lost a loved one and lost the opportunity to grieve in community, by holding a proper funeral, at the same time.  Their loss has been compounded.

People are wondering when they will be able to return to work and worrying whether or not they will even have a job to return to when this is over.  But underneath the fear/anxiety and the anger lives the sadness that will be revealed when the other two are stripped away.

I am wondering though, when this is over and we are taking stock of our losses, will we find that we have gained more than we have lost?  That would indeed be a surprise, wouldn’t it?  Right now we are told to make sacrifices.  Isn’t a sacrifice in baseball, someone who takes a loss (an out) in order to obtain a greater gain? (the advancement of other runners already on base)

Will our current losses bring us greater gain?  James thinks so, as he says in James 1:2-4, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

Not lacking anything?  Are you kidding me?  This COVID-19 has been all about loss, if you ask me.  What gains could be greater than all I am losing on a daily basis? Paul had an answer to that question which he gave in Philippians 3:8-9 when he stated,

“What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.  I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.”

“Rubbish?”  that’s what Paul thought of all his earthly possessions and achievements?  Well, he was the one who said in 2 Corinthians 4:18, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

Job also had some thoughts on the matter when he said in Job 23:10, “But He (God) knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold.”

Job thought his gains would be of greater worth than his losses.  He trusted God that would be true, even though his current circumstances gave him no reason to believe that.  But then, that’s what faith is, trusting God over our circumstances.

As I am grieving my lesser losses, hopefully not guilty grieving, I can realize that (just as in baseball) my losses are the sacrifices necessary to bring about the greater good and the greater gains God has in store for me.

Peter summed it up when he said in 1 Peter 1:7, “These (trials) have come so that your faith – of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire – may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.”

My Heavenly Father is not unaware of my sadness as I watch others experiencing loss even as I am experiencing losses of my own.  I have His assurance in Psalm 34:18,

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

“But Thou, O Lord, art a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.”  (Psalm 3:3)

Thank You, Lord, for being the lifter of my head when I am sad.

sincerely,        Grace Day

 

 

 

It’s Sunday again – and not just any Sunday, it’s Palm Sunday.  Palm Sunday has always been special to me, particularly as a child because we literally carried palm branches down the aisles of the church, waving them wildly in a grand procession to the front of the church where we laid them, maybe on an altar or at the foot of a cross, I don’t really remember that part.  But I do remember the novelty of the palm branches.  I don’t think I’d ever seen a palm branch otherwise.

So I confess that on this gray morning, as I set out on my solitary morning walk, I found myself wondering if it was really Palm Sunday at all, because it didn’t feel or look like any Palm Sunday I had ever known.  I hadn’t gotten very far at all when I realized someone must have flipped a switch as I slept last night, because this was a different world than the one I walked in just yesterday.

The sky was gray but the grass had turned a deep green everywhere I looked. Trees were budding all around me and flowering pear trees had blossomed overnight, a beautiful, white lacy look – perfect for a special day like today.  Other trees were budding deep red, in complete contrast to the white blooms.  The forsythia was everywhere, blooming bright yellow against the emerging greenery surrounding it.

Creation knew it was Palm Sunday!  Time to praise the Creator of heaven and of earth!  COVID-19 has no dominion here, I thought, no power to silence.  I thought of what Jesus said to the Pharisees on that first Palm Sunday, when they asked Him to silence the crowds that were cheering Him and praising God as He made His way into Jerusalem.

” ‘I tell you,’ He replied, ‘if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.’ ”  (Luke 19:40)

That’s true, I thought, as I continued my walk and ran into (almost literally) the biggest, most magnificent magnolia bush I have ever seen, full of purple blossoms exploding everywhere, from top to bottom and all around.  No way to silence this breathtaking beauty, over ten feet tall and quite wide, she will not be missed. Each and everyone of her deep purple flower blossoms is shouting praise to and showing off the glory of her Creator for all to see and be made glad at the sight!

God is still on His throne.  COVID-19 is not in charge and has not won.  Everywhere I looked this truth was inescapable.  But God was not done blessing me beyond measure yet!  As I continued on my regular route, I came upon a child’s chalk art. It was at the end of the driveway so it wouldn’t be missed, but not on the sidewalk where it would be walked over and therefore fade faster.

There I saw a very large chalk heart with the words “have a great day” written on the inside of it.  Next to that were the words “this is hope” with an arrow pointing to a large chalk cross.  No more words were necessary – the cross said it all!  The cross, the universal symbol of hope for humankind.

Hope is what everyone is seeking more than ever right now because of the COVID-19 crisis.  Hope, more desirable than even toilet paper, is what is needed to see us through this time.  The absence of hope will prove more deadly than the corona virus ever could be.  This chalk artist knew the value of holding out hope to a hurting world and made her/his contribution to that cause.

Thank you anonymous chalk artist!  You were joining in with all creation this morning in making the ultimate confession, the one thing we all need to confess!

“that at the name of Jesus 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 God the Father.”    (Philippians 2:10-11)

let that be my confession today and everyday  . . .

sincerely,      Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s confession should not come as much of a shocker since I previously confessed to being a closet claustrophobic.  So it should come as no surprise that I confess to my dislike of tunnels and I avoid them at all costs.

There is a reason people refer to, “the light at the end of the tunnel.”  The reason being, there is no light in the tunnel.  It is dark in there.  You can’t see up ahead, so you don’t know what’s coming next.  If you can’t see the light at the end, you have no idea how much further it is, how much longer your time in the tunnel will be. Sound familiar?

We all want out of the tunnel!  Tunnels are dark, unpleasant, confining, scary places that lead  to who knows where? but we hope they lead to something better on the other side, or we would never have entered into them in the first place. . .   or maybe we were forced in   . . .

Often tunnels have to be traveled alone.  They are a part of one’s solitary journey to get to the other side or to the end of whatever it might be.  But this tunnel, built by the COVID-19 virus, has swallowed all of us up and into her cavernous darkness – in one gulp she has ingested our entire globe.  She has taken us captive and dared us to find the light waiting for us at the other end of her.

We may feel like we have been left alone to find our way in the darkness.  But in this tunnel, the tunnel that COVID-19 built, we have plenty of company because no one is exempt from the effects of her presence.  So we are all crammed in this dark place together, trying to find our way out (while practicing our social distancing of course).

However, this description of the dark tunnel doesn’t really ring totally true for me. Yes, tunnels are typically dark places, devoid of all light.  And yes I am in this one along with everyone else.  but –  just as God was with Daniel’s three friends in the furnace – He is with us in this tunnel.  And His presence provides us light.  His presence is light!

How can I be sure God’s presence is here with me?  Psalm 139:7-10 is pretty clear on that subject.  “Where can I go from Your Spirit?  Where can I flee from Your presence?  If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in the depths, You are there.  If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me, Your right hand will hold me fast.”  (this is not the time to be practicing social distancing from God, holding His hand is CDC approved, I’m sure)

In fact, my Heavenly Father reassures me in Isaiah 41:13 saying, “For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.”

So God’s got me by the hand but there’s more. He is also the light in my darkness. He is the light in this dark tunnel we are all in.

“If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to You; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to You.”   (Psalm 139:11-12)

In John 1:4-5 &9 I read these words about Jesus, “In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.   . . .   The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.”

James 1:17 describes God as “the Father of the heavenly lights,”  Psalm 104:2 says, “He wraps Himself in light as with a garment;”.

That’s Who I have in this tunnel with me, holding my hand – the Creator who said, “let there be light!”,  the God who calls every star by name, the Father of the heavenly lights, the One who dresses in light, the One who is the light of the world.

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”   (John 8:12)

Today, I do not see any light at the end of this tunnel because I can’t even see the end of the tunnel itself.  But I do not walk this tunnel alone and I do not walk this tunnel in darkness.  The One who holds my hand to guide me through this is The Light!   

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.”  (2 Corinthians 9:8)

I have what I need right now in the tunnel where there is work for me to do today – Lord, help me to redeem each day.

sincerely,       Grace Day