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The year of two identifiable pandemics continues, unabated for the most part on the viral front and with debatable progress on the racial.  At least a general consensus has been reached by most that both are threats to the public health of this nation. As the virus’ rates of infection and deaths surge (2,381,369 cases and 121,979 deaths in the U.S. as of the latest counts) especially in larger states that reopened despite warnings by health care experts, I sense a continuing uneasiness both within the general populace and the edifices of government. The attempt to control the spread of the coronavirus, coupled with quelling civil unrest prompted by racism and its tentacles of hatred, brutality and racial privilege has taken its toll.  Small victories in some areas are promising but not enough. And the successes of other nations who have made significant turnarounds in dealing with COVID-19 is akin to a slap in the face to the “most powerful nation in the western world.”

Why are we continuing to struggle on both fronts? What impedes effective and lasting movement toward solutions? Depending upon whom you ask, the answers are muddled at best. Recently I came across a quote by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that speaks eloquently to us during this season of our discontent. He wrote, “There comes a time when silence is betrayal…Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter… In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” This is such a time. From the least amongst us to the most powerful, it is time to end the silence. From whatever place you inhabit it is time to speak truth to power and demand change for the betterment of not the few, but all in whatever ways you can. It is time for people of faith to lead that movement toward justice on all fronts in a nation that identifies itself as “Christian.” Every Sunday morning the messages from all denominations whether in person or virtual ought be a condemnation of “the way we were,” and an embrace of policies and practices that lead to healing the body and the soul of the nation. When our leaders speak nonsense and spew ignorance, they should be challenged, not condoned by silent lips. Whether it is an issue of science, of recommended behavioral protocols to fight the virus or long over due reforms in police procedures or admission of the  systemic racism as being inherent in the social fabric of this country, it is time to own the sins of forefathers that paint the portrait of who we are as a people now.

History will judge us; will reveal the truth of who we were during an unprecedented era. But more importantly, God will judge us. He who has allowed this turmoil to turn society upside down watches and waits. I’ve come to believe He has permitted these pandemics to test us; to see if we are who we proclaim; a people who worship and obey an omnipotent God; a God who expects “justice to roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream;” a God who has shown us what is good, and who requires of us “to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly” with Him. There is no place in this time of pandemics for braggadocio, deceit, ignorance, or lack of empathy. When these imps take the stage, they must be challenged by words and deeds that expose them for what they are. We the people cannot afford to be silent any longer.

Love. Joy. Peace.

 

Coronavirus Pandemic Day 144:  2.04 Million Cases/115 Thousand Deaths

My nephew and his family have all tested positive for COVID-19. At this moment he is quite ill. They are among the 1.99 million current cases, an increase since my last post of 1,402. The current death toll is 108 thousand; an increase since my Tuesday post of 399. Think about that. In two days,  399 more people have died of this disease that continues to try and test us. And until the number of infections and deaths ceases, we will live in a world unlike the one we knew when this new decade began. Air hugs, elbow bumps, wind kisses, physical distancing (6 ft. apart please), 20 second hand washing, and  mouths and noses covered by a mask refashion how we interact with each other. And don’t forget the Lysol spray, Purell hand sanitizer and Clorox wipes (if you can find them)! Precious commodities in a world defined by a virus.

As you know of course, this new normal is juxtaposed with the movement fueled by social protests and demonstrations for equality and an end to the systemic racism that still defines this nation.  Although the size of the crowds marching in protest are not as large as they were in the beginning, the demands for change have not lessen. The moment that has become a movement is speaking to the hearts of many who heretofore accepted the status quo, or saw little wrong with it. For them the issue of race had been laid to rest decades ago – after all the country had an African American president for eight years. Surely there remained no traces of those years of racial divide after all this time. What the current climate has birthed is the recognition that underneath the shiny surface of “All is well within the good old USA,” lay spirits still tarnished and dulled by racial hatred and a sense of superiority. For the most part, people of color knew the duality; others either didn’t know or didn’t care.

So here we are, a nation fighting two wars on its own soil at the same time. The Health and Race War of 2020 is not an experience we ever could have imagined.  A statement written by Oswald Chambers in his classic devotional book, My Utmost for His Highest,  speaks well to this most unlikely period in our history. “Experience is a gateway, not an end.” God has allowed us the experience of fighting two wars simultaneously. Neither need be the end of this grand experiment called “America.” With God’s guidance and inspiration, each can become the gateway to life as He would have us live it. Finding viable solutions to a global pandemic that will improve the health of every citizen is a battle well worth the inconveniences and prohibitions and changes in  old norms we live with now. Likewise, admitting and owning racial feelings and behaviors and systemic racial practices that impede and deny full citizenship to people of color; and deliberately working to eradicate them is the only arsenal that will lead to victory in this race war.  My prayer is that each threat will be seen as Chambers describes – a gateway for a country to live the principles it espouses.

Love. Joy. Peace.

 

 

 

 

 

Coronavirus Pandemic Day 141  –  1.99 Million Cases/ 108 Thousand Deaths

Since my post on June 3, there have been 18, 556 more reported cases and 448 more deaths from the viral pandemic. Despite the continuing climb in those numbers, states are reopening. People are returning to some semblance on the economic front of what was the norm five months ago. Social distancing is easing and only half the populace (based on my observations) appears to embrace the new facial accessory-  masks. The efforts to find a vaccine and therapeutic medicines continue and growing numbers of people take advantage of the increasing testing sites. Predictably, as more are tested, more cases come to light. And though the executive branch of our government has taken a step back in leading the fight, the battle to subdue the virus goes on.

So too does the other fight in which our country is involved; the one whose impetus was a brazen and blatant act of police brutality witnessed on video. The killing of George Floyd (whose funeral happens to be today in his hometown of Houston, Texas) sparked street demonstrations and protests that began in Minneapolis, the scene of the killing,  and within days spread not just across this nation, but across the world. People, young and not so, black, white, brown and any other colors you want to throw in, poured onto streets, freeways, parks, in front of the White House, and government buildings where decisions are forged and sealed which affect the lives of people of color in brutal ways. The sheer exhaustion of living daily as a person of color seemed finally to collapse. Mr. Floyd’s unnecessary death was the pin that burst the balloon of pent up emotions. Defying curfews, police tactics of suppression, a president’s bullying and threats, and even his flooding of the streets of the nation’s capital with the military did not derail the protestors, stop their marching or their cries for freedom and an end to racism.

I spent the better part of the weekend immersed in films, primarily based upon historical events, that explored the depths of racism in this nation. Amazon Prime-whose heading: Amazon Supports Black Lives Matter– or some wording to that effect, is showing these cinematic reminders of who we are as a people, how we became that people and the truth that racism was built into the foundational fabric of the country. That innate sense of white supremacy which subjugated and destroyed the indigenous natives ( who peopled this land for at least 15,000 years prior to the European intrusion) survives to this day. After the decimation of all things non-European, a people kissed by the sun would come to know the egregiousness of this same white privilege.     Over the span of 400 years,  people of color arrived upon these shores, not as human beings, but property  to be bought and sold. To justify such evil required a shift in the moral compass of people (who reportedly came to the new land seeking religious freedom) that has yet to be owned or corrected. The color of ones skin defines one’s worth still in the land of the free and the brave. And it is this unrelenting hypocrisy that may have finally snapped the patience of people of all hues. Maybe, despite their positions of privilege, many whites are awakened to the danger this pandemic of racism presents to all of us. Maybe the old saying that a nation divided will not stand is finally making sense. In a world where people of color outnumber those who aren’t, maybe reality is taking hold.

A lot of “maybes”. But still my hope as the second week of June 2020 begins is twofold: (1) that the battle against the physical pandemic coronavirus will be won or at least slowed by God’s wisdom indwelling the scientists and others seeking a cure; (2) that the spiritual pandemic of racism will be won once and for all by the awakening of the Holy Spirit in the hearts and minds of ordinary men and women who for too long have enjoyed the privilege of the color of their skin to the determent of others. That these persons will lay down their weapon of color supremacy and use the weapon of their voices to decry racial hatred and injustice; to vote out of office whose who cling to perverted ideals of yesteryear; to say “Yes” to decency, fairness, equality and “No” to the institutions and attitudes of our past that brought us to this crisis, to this moment that has become a movement for freedom for all God’s people.

Love. Joy. Peace.

 

Pandemic 2020: Day 136      (1.87 M cases/ 108K deaths)

Another day dawns with the hope that the uptick in the coronavirus pandemic infections and deaths has stalled. Sadly. that is not the case. Since Monday, 20,073 plus more people have been diagnosed with the disease and 1,039 more individuals have succumbed to it. Along side this news continues  that of the civil unrest and protests in response to the pandemic of racism. The tension and protests have expanded beyond the shores of the United States to other countries who join us in our cries and demands for an end to racist policies and procedures directed toward people of color.

As with most protests, scenes of the  marchers with their signs and banners walking  peacefully are sometimes overtaken by others which depict unnecessary violence and looting; expressions which do nothing to advance the purposes of the lawfully assembled voicing valid grievances. On the contrary, images of violence by protestors and police contradict the principles of our democracy and our identity as a Christian nation.  Perhaps that is why, try as I might, I cannot erase the image of the United States President posing for a photo op in front a church brandishing the Holy Bible in his hand; as if it were a sword.  Arranging for the photo to be taken required national military to clear a path through peaceful protestors. The ensuing debacle of officers riding through the crowd and tossing tear gas cannisters to disperse it was a picture of a nation in its capitol city gone mad; the madness of the moment generated by the madness of a president who chose to walk across the park where the protestors were gathered as a show, I surmise,  of his power to do so.

Perhaps he might be excused for exercising poor judgment once he stood in front of that sacred edifice if he had opened the Bible and read aloud scriptures that speak to healing and forgiveness and love; if he had seized that moment to apologize for his divisive, hurtful words and twits, for the chaos his walking over had just caused; if he had voiced solidarity with the people and demanded justice for the family of George Floyd whose death at the hands of police generated the current uprising; if had called for the  immediate prosecution of those officers to the fullest extent of the  law; if he had said, “I’m sorry;” if he had bowed his knee and his head and prayed. But as we know, he did none of those things. Instead he failed the test of leadership in a Christian nation and lost a historic moment to change his legacy.

As I watched the replays of the video that captured that defining moment, I thought of those rulers in our biblical history who committed sacrileges in God’s holy places of worship; of their arrogance in taking the holy things of temple and using them for secular purposes; not as God had ordained. The Gospel of Matthew reads, “My house shall be called a house of prayer...” (Matthew 21:13) How damming is this image of the ruler of this country using God’s house of prayer and God’s holy word for a photo op! I cannot imagine that such sacrilege will go unpunished. “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthened hearts that are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.” (2 Chronicles 16:9) These words to King Asa recorded in the chronicles of the kings of Judah seem so appropriate to this moment. Since his foolish gesture for a foolish reason in front of God’s house, I believe this president will continue to be at war with the people he was elected to govern and with the world at large.

“The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.”  (Proverbs 15:3) May we strive daily to be among “the good.”

Love. Joy. Peace.

 

 

 

Day 134 – Pandemic 2020  (1.83 million confirmed cases/106 million deaths)

Today we begin month six of the new decade. I had such high hopes for it that I termed it “The Year of Perfect Vision.”  Perhaps,  I mused,  this would be the year in which God’s perfect will would manifest itself. And too,  I liked the numbers themselves; I was born on the 20th of the second month of the year,  so twos and zeroes are frosty with me. Whatever my reasoning, I admit I’m somewhat ambivalent now about this year of repeating numbers. We’re half way through it. and all hades appears to have broken loose.  “Perfect Vision” may be a misnomer.

Though pushed to the media sidelines, the coronavirus pandemic continues. As the numbers attest, new cases are confirmed each day, and deaths have not ceased. Scientists and others continue the search for a preventive vaccine and medications to treat the disease should one become infected. No longer though is the statistical data in a box on the screen staring at you on cable networks. All eyes now are on the evolving civil unrest spreading like wild fire in the major cities of the nation as protestors raise their voices against the other pandemic: racism in America; this time exposed in the actions of a white policeman and a black man he killed without cause. Unlike the coronavirus pandemic, which attacked without warning four or so months ago, the pandemic of racism has been with us some 400 years; since the first people of African descent arrived in the colonies. It has ebbed and flowed over the centuries, but has never been eradicated.  Its insidiousness flares in modern times whenever blatant expressions of it are brought to  public awareness.  And because we have yet to find a remedy to thwart it, when it hits, it hits hard.

The “Thought for the Day” in a devotional I read this morning resonated. It was the simple but profound comment of a cancer survivor who declared, “So I am still here. I am a child of God.” What an expression of faith, despite a health diagnosis and prognosis that could easily cause one to lose hope, to give up. I believe it’s the kind of faith required of us as we struggle with the prognoses and diagnoses of the times.  We are threatened by two pandemics, each capable of destruction. They’re on a rampage; but we must not forget the God we serve is present still in our midst; watching to see how we respond to both destroyers. Psalm 145:8 reminds us that “The Lord is merciful and compassionate, very patient, and full of faithful love.” I believe this description of our heavenly Father speaks to us especially now.  I believe He will deliver us from both pandemics. He knows our frame and because of His mercy and compassion will not allow us to endure more than we can bear. As His perfect timing unfolds, He will continue to be patient, hoping none will be lost, but will turn to His perfect ways. He is a faithful God, whose love for His creation is all-encompassing. Irrespective of our challenges,  we can proclaim, “I am a child of God.” That assertion and surety are sufficient for today and all our tomorrows. No, the year 2020 may not be perfect, but the God we serve is. We who believe in Him know what we see now is momentary. Because both pandemics are “seen,” we know they are not eternal, but temporary trials; and both will bow to His perfect will one day.

Love. Joy, Peace.

 

Pandemic 2020 – Day 131.    (1.7 million cases/ 101,635 deaths)

Four months and counting. The numbers of Americans affected by the coronavirus continue to rise; as does the search for a vaccine and medications to reverse its impact. The viral battle dominates the nation’s attention, or at least it did until yesterday. Today, all eyes are on another American pandemic; an age old one that simmers not in the physical domain but in the spiritual. It hides in the deep recesses of the national soul- it is the pandemic of racism. I have always maintained that the defining issue of this country is that of the racial divide; the issue of skin color and ethnic origin. Over the centuries no vaccine or antidote has effectively conquered its deadliness. The passage of laws, executive orders, the civil rights movement, court decisions and none of the other remedies applied over the years since this nation was founded have been able to eradicate this deadly virus of the soul.

So here are on this 139th day of fighting a viral attack that has shattered the norms of this Christian nation, derailing its economy and wrecking havoc in every area of the lives of its citizens. COVID-19 has been pushed over to share the national stage with Racism. In Minneapolis, the past two nights have been filled with the images of community outrage, rioting, burning and looting by protestors over the killing of George Floyd. The murder of the black man was captured on video recordings that depict the police brutality that resulted in his unnecessary death.  Reminiscent of other times in our history when a white man, usually a policeman, kills an unarmed black man without cause, the  images speak to the unresolved issues of race. It is a powerful enemy, and like the coronavirus challenges this nation of professed Christians during an era of diminished national leadership. The president’s tweet saying the looters should be shot was so alarming,  Twitter censored the comments because they broke the company’s rules glorifying violence.

Will this ever get better, ever end? Understandable queries in this new norm of 20 second hand washing, disinfecting, mask wearing, social distancing, virtual everything and sheltering in place. Even as states move to lift some restrictions in an effort to reboot the economy and move back to “normal” in other areas, we know that without a vaccine to prevent and meds to heal,  the fight against the viral disease is far from over. So too it appears is our longstanding fight against racism. An invisible infectious agent wrecks lives  in staggering numbers, for the moment at least. We are confident that in time scientists will harness God’s wisdom and produce what we need to combat COVID-19. I’m not as optimistic about the other virus. Racism goes dormant for a spell, but it has not as of yet been entirely erased from the DNA of this nation. Just look at how it so easily took the leading role from the other wrecker to showcase its lethal ability to kill and destroy.  There really is only one remedy for it; God spoke it millennia ago. Healing from racism won’t come a laboratory or the halls of congress or the courtroom. No, the healing needed for that pandemic can come only from God. But it’s conditional. ” If my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked way, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14) There it is: the cure for racism. Humility, prayer, forsaking wickedness in all its forms-bound together to seek the face of God –  will free us of this unrelenting virus of the soul. May we embrace it. Individually. Collectively. As the people of God we profess to be.

Love. Joy. Peace.

Pandemic 2020 – 1, 681,793 Cases/ 98, 933 Deaths to date in the US.

As you’ve no doubt noted by now, I am not posting as often. It’s not neglect, but rather time management or the unexpected that push the blog to the back burner. Thankfully today I’m back in the saddle. Imagine a smile emoji here.

As you also note,  I am including now at the beginning of each posting the most current pandemic statistics as reported on CNN. They help us remember this battle is not over; even as across the nation we are lifting safety protocols in an effort to return to life as we knew it four months ago. I embrace the “wait and see” perspective; hoping the lifting of restrictions doesn’t produce a viral resurgence, that cases and deaths do not spiral upward.

Two scriptural references are helping me in my hopes for a downward trend in both of these markers. I read them in one of my devotionals this morning. “Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.”  (Romans 13:14) “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” (Colossians 3:12) Both as citizens of this country and inhabitants of the world at large, we have experienced a crisis beyond our abilities so far to control. It’s hard to fight an invisible foe. And it doesn’t help that the microscopic images of it somehow remind us more of chemistry or biology lab experiments than an enemy intent upon destroying us. Yet that weird looking thing is deadly; its capacity to destroy both body and spirit a reality. It is the latter that draws my attention today.

The majority of us have accepted that masks and as needed,  gloves,  serve as protectors of our physical being. We physically distance as another precautionary practice and adhere to mom’s ageless admonition, “Wash your hands!” like programmed robots. These new norms are ways we address this abnormality. The scriptural references are another. They point to the protectors of our spirit- man/woman, needed as much if not more during a pandemic. The key word in both is “clothe.” Where the masks and gloves and hazmat suits protect the body, clothing ourselves in Jesus Christ’s spirit and the fruit of the spirit will protect our souls. Soul protection is key to our survival. No manner of secular garments can prevent indifference, mean-spiritedness, pride, coarseness of speech, lack of compassion, and impatience driven by greed. Only the fruit of the spirit of Jesus can do that. Victory over the pandemic will come in two ways. Vaccines and medicines will stop its physical impact; clothing ourselves in compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience will blunt its impact upon our souls.

Love. Joy. Peace.

 

Pandemic 2020 – Day 127.    (As of May 24: 1,622,114 Cases/97,049 Deaths)

Today we celebrate Memorial Day, the holiday set aside to honor the men and women who serve and have served in the various branches of the nation’s military forces. The annual coming together for the memorial concert on the mall in the nation’s capital was cancelled. The pandemic  still has the upper hand in this  silent war of man vs virus, so such gatherings are prohibited. And though the physical aspects of the celebration were changed, the spirit of the memorial celebration remained. That spirit birthed a virtual concert complete with the usual bells and whistles, and  enhanced with new touches making it even more memorable. For one and half hours, we were reminded of the bravery, courage and love of country by veterans who served in various wars. In acknowledgement of our current viral war, recognition and appreciation was also accorded those serving courageously and sacrificially on the front lines in hospitals and other venues; and those seeking to create the necessary weapons of vaccines and medications to fight COVID-19. The stories of heroism and sacrifice reminded us of how thankful we should be for these individuals and their service to us.

This morning as I engaged in my usual time of devotional reading and reflection, I came across this scripture: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13) Jesus spoke those words to His disciples while they were still gathered in the upper room following their last supper together.  He was preparing them for what was about to occur at Calvary with words He hoped would give them comfort. Following the statement above, Jesus added, “You are my friends if you do what I command…. I no longer call you servants,… instead, I have called you friends….” (John 15: 14-15) Those words weren’t just for the disciples as we well know; they are also His words to us today. We are Jesus’ friends when we do what He has commanded in His word. As an expression of friendship and its companion,  love, He willingly died on a cross that we might be reconciled to God by that sacrificial death. Because He did what He did, today salvation is ours; if we keep the commandments recorded in God’s Holy Word. When you process Jesus’ actions, it’s a no-brainer to see Him as our Divine nascent war hero. Long before the conflicts of modern times and continuing today mankind has been engaged in a spiritual war. The stakes were and are as high as those fought for in secular ones.  And in that battle raging in the spiritual realms, Jesus demonstrated the concept of bravely and courageously dying to save to save someone else; the concept of friendship and love in their fullest expressions.

As we commemorate those who in giving their lives insure the secular freedoms we cherish today, may we not forget the originator of sacrificial love -Jesus.  By His death on a cross, we have more than secular freedoms, we have sacred and eternal freedom in Christ. May we all say, “Thank you, Jesus, for Your service then and now.”

Love. Joy. Peace.

 

 

 

Pandemic 2020 – Day 124.

On average, I read Psalm 91 twice a day, during my own morning devotional time and when I share a devotional period  with my son during our afternoon virtual visit. I consider it my “Daily Psalm,” and can’t imagine stepping into any day without it. I confess though that I’ve read it so often sometimes it’s more rote recitation than it ought be. Today, the words refused to be read in that way. They rose off the page,  got in my face, and demanded that I draw from them what God is offering through them.  I decided their assertiveness is tied to the times in which we currently live.  In an era of pandemic, what better encouragement can we receive than that offered in what I term “The Promise Psalm.”

Biblical scholars give Moses credit for penning this great psalm. The first verse identifies to whom and for whom it is written – “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” And verse two declares Moses’ relationship with this God whose promises are all-encompassing. “I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.‘”  Verses three through eight give testimony to our belief that God’s word is timeless;  Moses’ affirmations speaking not just to his contemporaries, but to a people as yet unborn. We of the modern age are those people,  facing our own time of pestilence, terror and plague not known since the Pandemic of 1918. One hundred and two years later we get the patriarch’s  message. As he did in 13th century BCE, when he expressed in those verses what he believed God would do for His people, we 21st century AD followers concur with him.

What I want to point out today is that this Psalm of promises carries within it a stipulation that can easily escape notice. Verses ten through sixteen overflow with promises. They encourage and give hope that our God has our back. His protection in the most horrific times is assured; and that is true. But we have to go back to the verse that comes before those seven. Verse nine declares, “If you make the Most High your dwelling place – even the Lord, who is my refuge – then… “Gentle reader, there is the precursor. The word, If,  signifies there is a condition that must be met first. We can’t claim the promises of the psalm without doing something.  And what is that? We must make the Lord our dwelling place.  It’s  not that difficult. We do it in pretty much the same way we make our physical structure our dwelling place. We fill those structures with the things that meet our needs: beds, tables, chairs, towels, dishes, food, etc. In similar fashion,  if we are to make the Lord our dwelling place, we must fill that dwelling with the things that meet our spiritual needs: His holy word and its wisdom, His Spirit that gives guidance and informs our words, thoughts and deeds. When we manage to do those things, He becomes our shelter and a place to rest. And surrounded by that sense of His Presence,  we can look in the eye of a pandemic or any other disaster or trial or tribulation with courage and strength. We have activated His promises.

Love. Joy. Peace.