These are the days of Coronavirus…
Everything has changed. Have you noticed?
Work has changed. If you’re blessed enough to be working, the way in which you do your work has probably changed. Working remotely. Meetings by Zoom. Or if you must go someplace to work, there are probably numerous precautions like masks, social distancing, and plexiglass shields. Thankfully, work can still happen, but the way that it happens has changed.
School has changed. Most schools now educate their students in the Cloud. Learning happens via video, email (Lord have mercy, all the emails!), and pre-recorded classes. Kids learn around their dining room table or at the desks in their room. We are all homeschooling now—by the way, teachers should get a million dollars….a day. Kids are still learning, but how they are learning has changed.
Church has changed. Northside has been live streaming for many years. I am thankful for that. And in the days of COVID-19, I am thankful for our tech team of David Earles, David & Sarah Holt, Greg & Sharon McCubbin and their camera team, and Devin Anderson for helping to keep us going. We’ve maxed out our bandwidth a few times, but overall, we are continuing to reach thousands of people around the world. The Northside Singers have stepped up and have done an excellent job providing “congregational” singing without a congregation. And the preacher misses all of you dearly—not only in the pews, but also the handshakes, hugs, laughter, crying babies, little kids, foyer conversations, catching up with all of you and praying with you shoulder-to-shoulder. I miss connecting with you (and I do hope to see you this Sunday night for Sunday Night Live!)
Everyone and everything has changed. Yet in all of that, there are some things that never change.
God is still faithful. Jesus is still Savior. The Holy Spirit is still guiding and helping us. Resurrection still is our home. We are still the Church. And heaven is still our destination.
Long before this pandemic, Paul reminded us of a promise.
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?…No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
I greatly look forward to the Sunday when we can all be together again. That will be a very special day indeed. Until then, may we hold on to our hope, and remember that though everything else may change, the things that matter most, do not.