Do you ever find yourself asking why? Three months ago I never would have imagined we would wait in line to go into a grocery store or be wearing masks in public. This time last year, as we were going away to celebrate Nicole's 60th birthday, I couldn't envision a world where international borders would be closed. Never in my wildest dreams would I have expected the level of disruption that coronavirus has caused. And yet, here we are. And for many, the temptation is to ask why.
I think it is human nature in the midst of trial, struggle, suffering or tragedy to ask why. Why did this have to happen? Why my loved one? But I think the better question is not why, but how? I believe with all my heart that God is good, that he loves us with a boundless and unconditional love. I do not believe that God inflicts on his people pain or suffering.
Michelle, one of our student snack pack volunteers, decked out for “hero day!”
But I do believe that God can use all things for good. So as we live through this crisis, the question I keep asking myself is how. Lord, how can you bring good out of bad in this Covid crisis? How can we redeem this terrible situation? Is it possible that this disruption, that has shaken our entire world, can somehow be used for ultimate good?
In my mind, the answer to the why question is fairly simple. Why is there struggle? Why is there sickness? Why Covid? Because we live in a broken and imperfect world. That won't always be the case. One day we will live in perfection in God's heavenly kingdom. But as long as we are in this imperfect world, there will be struggle. So the question I prefer to ask is not why, but how. How can we use even the hard things in life for ultimate good? Over and over in my life I have seen God bring blessing from curse, beauty from ashes. And I believe he will do it again.
I am not yet certain how that will happen or what it will look like. But that is the nature of faith. Hebrews teaches us that faith is a confidence in things hoped for that we do not yet see. I believe that God is already at work, in ways we cannot see, to bring forth good from what has been a long and difficult season of life.
I can already see hints of it in the ways people are being forced to take sabbath, the ways we are growing to appreciate things we have taken for granted and in the ways families are spending more time together. And from a spiritual perspective, I believe God is already using this to open people's hearts to the gospel and to help us, his church, find new ways to share that good news.
I know our temptation is to ask “why.” But I want to encourage us to ask “how.” How can God use this for good, and how can we be a part of that redemption? I want to remind you that Thursday at 6:30 pm our midweek service will stream on Facebook and be available on demand at any time from our website. And I hope to see you all on Sunday at 9:00 am for our livestream worship.
God bless,
Pastor Steve