"And lo, I am with you always"

The sad but true saga of the coronavirus (or Covid-19) continues.  The affect it is having on everyday life is staggering.  This week, in my home state of Colorado, the governor issued a “stay-at-home” order, until April 11; meaning unless you work for a critical business or are doing essential activities, you have to stay at home (I’m grateful that my job in food service is critical).  I know this is also the case for other states.  In fact, as I was writing this blog, I saw the governor of North Carolina just hours ago issued a similar mandate for that state.  This is so surreal to be a part of; it seems like the plot of a movie or something.

In tumultuous days like this, it is so important to lift our eyes off of the circumstances, and put them on a loving, faithful God.  Back on New Year’s Eve, in my other blog, I relayed that, in 2019, a pastor named Ryan Singleton had preached a sermon on the importance of looking back and reminding ourselves of what God has done in the past.  This was refreshing to hear because so often when the past is mentioned people speak as if they just want to forget their past forever; but as Ralph Dibny from the TV show “The Flash” once said, “Some things are worth remembering.”

Singleton’s sermon had three points.  Number one: “We remember God’s faithfulness in the past.”  His text was Joshua chapters 3 and 4.  In chapter 3, God miraculously parts the waters of the Jordan River so that the Israelites were able to cross on dry land.  In chapter 4, God tells Joshua to take 12 stones from the middle of the Jordan, and they would serve as a tangible reminder of what God had done.  The Lord has also shown up in many miraculous ways in my life; to look back on these memorable events, I find myself humbled by God’s divine intervention.

Point number 2 was: “We know God is with us in the present.”  This verse wasn’t quoted in the sermon, but it’s been coming to my mind a lot recently.  In Matthew 28, after Jesus had risen from the dead, He says to His disciples, “All authority has been given to Me in Heaven and on Earth” (verse 18).  Obviously, a typical man can’t honestly say that he has been given all authority in Heaven and Earth, and if he did, he would be booked for a trip to the psychiatrist!  But Jesus can say it because He is God, and He proved it by His resurrection.  This makes His statement in verse 20 incredibly profound and comforting; He declares, “And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

And in conclusion, point number 3 is, “We trust in God’s power for our future.”  I concluded that blog in December by saying, “Ryan Singleton, the one who presented this sermon I’ve been referencing, was spot-on.  God has been faithful in the past; and He is faithful in the present; therefore, we have every confidence that we can trust in His faithfulness in the future.”  Three months later, the Coronavirus or Covid-19 intimidates us.  Is there going to be pain and maybe even loss of friends or family as a result of this?  My heart hurts at the prospect that someone reading this might be facing this grim reality.  But all I know to do is look to God in all of this.  I’m going to trust in Him, no matter what. 

Kevin