Up until a few days ago, we are all caught up in whatever our routines were. Get out of bed, shower, get kids up and ready, breakfast, send kids off to school and out the door to begin our day. Come home after work and school put something together for dinner, wash up, homework, and off to bed. Get up and do the same thing over again. We would have identified our lives as busy but we were comfortable in the routine and we almost welcomed the routine.
What might have been missing in our regular routines is quality time spent with people that we have relationships with. Did we really listen to our children tell us how their day was? Did we really listen to our spouse talk about a specific challenge that they faced? Did we take time to sit before the Lord, meditating on His word and listening for His voice?
Our routines changed on Friday afternoon after the Governor announced that all schools in the commonwealth were to close down for at least two weeks. Suddenly, if it hadn’t already, the Chinese Corona Virus that we were hearing about on the news hit home and impacted our way of living. For the most part, we would say that this is an inconvenience and I do agree with that sentiment. However, I also believe that God is using this time to draw people who were far from Him closer to Him. Think about it. There really isn’t much on the TV anymore since sports have been cancelled. Most people are working from home which means the family units are being put together. As of yesterday, you can’t go out shopping except to the grocery store and you can’t go out to eat except to order take out and bring it home. We have been forced to slow down and focus on what is really important. I don’t believe that God caused Corona Virus but I do believe He is using it to restore the family and to call the church back to Him.
In 1 Kings 19, Elijah found himself on the mountain after defeating the prophets of Baal. Jezebel was hard on his tail and as he is finding shelter in the cave, the Lord asks him what he is doing there. After expressing to God how faithful he has been and how he is the only one left who had not bowed the knee to Baal, God invites Elijah to come to the mouth of the cave because He was about to pass by. The wind came and went and the Lord wasn’t in the wind. An earthquake came and went and the Lord was not in the earthquake. A fire came and went and the Lord was not in the fire. Finally a gentle whisper, and some scholars believe that the whisper was simply stillness or silence. Elijah experienced the presence of God in the gentle whisper. Our lives have slowed down dramatically and in my opinion that is not a bad thing.
May we use this time of stillness to listen to the voice of God in order to reconnect with Him and may we take advantage of the opportunities to reconnect with our families, focusing on what is truly important. May we be faithful to pray for those who are affected by this virus and the medical workers who are on the front line and may we pray that the Lord in His mercy will stop the spread of this virus and when He does we will give Him all the praise and all of the glory.