Coronavirus - Detachment and Reality

Hello to everyone in this dreadful time. It has been a long time since I wrote anything - I am sure, as yours has, my life has changed. Belonging to both Anglican and Methodist Churches has seen me undertaking a lot of work helping to promote and keep people informed of online services and messages. It has also brought on a lot of work with our two businesses. However, I have been thinking and contemplating - and now I have found time at last to write.

With the revealing of this horrific virus and its effects being gradually imparted to us by the various news channels since January - my thoughts take me to compare this to the watching of a disaster movie. For many of us who are in lockdown and able to stay at home, we switch on the TV and watch the constant flow of numbers. Numbers of infected, numbers of deaths. Is it going up? When will it go down? We watch and admire the bravery of front-line workers - and my goodness they so deserve this admiration. They really are the heroes in this evolving disaster movie - fighting bravely against the enemy. We see those who have succumbed to this terrible virus - their photos and stories - and feel such sadness. However, it is so easy to be detached from reality - living the effects of the virus through TV and the internet. 

Of course this is anything but a movie. This is a real life human tragedy on an enormous scale with so many having to deal face to face with this virus. The front-line workers who not only risk their own life, but worry about infecting their own families. The families of these workers, worrying about their loved ones day to day contact with the virus. Those who have tragically lost a family member or friend. These most certainly are living the virus in real life.
 
There has probably been no better time to focus on ‘love thy neighbour’ than now. And how wonderful is it to see that Christians and non-Christians alike are really taking this on board. Communities are coming together and helping the vulnerable.  And this is certainly brought home through Jesus’ Parable, the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-46) -  with the message of performing simple tasks to help anyone in need. As in anyone and everyone. How gratifying it is to see that the majority of society is offering such help.  Ironically being apart through social distancing seems to be bringing us together.

Finally we must all ensure we live this virus in real life.  This is not a film or a story. We must detach our minds from TV and dig deep into our hearts - grasping every piece of empathy and love. And with this empathy and love, we must pray. Pray hard and pray long to our Lord Jesus Christ. Pray for others, pray for ourselves. We are so lucky to be Christians - our belief in Jesus Christ gives us so much - and at this time it gives us the much needed hope and comfort we need. I personally am so thankful for this.

God bless you all and please stay safe.