Life Interrupted

Having a lot of "home" time these days? Has life been interrupted by this pandemic known as Covid-19? Many people are still working, but some are working from home, with children underfoot, trying to do their school work. Others are working in healthcare, or are considered essential workers, and are still working. Others are not working, and some don't know if they have a job to go back to. Whatever your situation is, it is not the same as it was back in January.

January 1st was my last blog entry, before I had even heard of Covid-19. At that time I mused, "What's happening in 2020? Maybe some exciting events. Maybe some life changing unexpected interruptions." I was not trying to be prophetic, but a life changing interruption is upon us. Yes, our lives have been changed in ways I could never have envisioned. Exciting events have been interrupted....cancelled. A trip to the Azores in May, in celebration of our 50 years of marriage is cancelled. A trip to Newfoundland to celebrate a friend's 80th birthday in August is pretty certain to be cancelled. Getting together with kids and grandkids for Mother's Day......cancelled. 

This is an historic event for almost everyone alive today. 99.9% of us were not alive in 1918 when the last pandemic killed millions of people. I never envisioned a world where the government would close down stores, parks and all but essential health services. A new term called "social distancing" has become law. Anyone who gets more than two metres from someone not living in their own home can be fined. Lingering in a park can cost you $850. We are not supposed to travel out our our immediate area, and only go out if you have to. In other words "stayhome! Kids are doing school at home, apart from their classmates and their schools and their teachers. Life interrupted! 

There are some people who still seem to think that Covid-19 is not a big deal. It's not much different than the flu, but if you watch the news and see the refrigerated trucks lined up in New York City holding dead bodies because the morgues are full, the body bags coming out of nursing homes, right here in Canada, you can't help but realize that this can truly be a deadly disease, more deadly than influenza. In Canada we have not been hit as hard as many countries, but that may be because most people are taking this seriously. One Hamilton native, Nick Cordero, a graduate of Westdale Highschool, now a Broadway performer, was stricken hard with Covid-19. He was moving from NYC to LA. He has been in ICU for 38 days and counting. He was perfectly healthy man, who has had to have his right leg amputated, has heart damage, lung damage, and  two mini strokes. His wife urges,"Take the coronavirus seriously. This disease does not just effect old people. This is real. A perfectly healthy 41 year old man!" Their lives have been drastically and heartbreakingly 
interrupted!!

What do we do with life's interruptions? How are we affected by events that are out of our control and change life so drastically. In our Western world we are unaccustomed to many events that are life changing, especially where we live in Southern Ontario. We don't get a lot of natural disasters such as earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, or famines, droughts or epidemics. Yes, we can see these events on the news, but they are usually somewhere else.  

It makes me think of many people in the Bible whose lives were interrupted. I think of 16 year old Mary, who was told by an angel that she would give birth to the Savior of the world. She was not even married, and was not planning a baby right then. Life interrupted! Abraham was told by God to leave his own country and God would lead him to another place, that God would show him...where? who knows? only God knows! ..... and God will make him into a great nation. Moses was a soft spoken man who was slow of speech (he stuttered?) and God told him to go before the powerful Pharaoh of Egypt and ask for the release of his people, who were slaves there, and then God would lead them to the promised land....who me? Life interrupted! 

In this time, all of our lives have been interrupted. How are you handling this interruption that has gone on longer than most of us would like? What are you learning from all of this? What is God saying to you in all of this? I have always loved my family, but during this time of separation the simple pleasure of gathering together, and hugging people, is one thing I miss the most. Something I took for granted before this Covid-19 interruption. It's the simple ordinary things that I hope we can return to, like walking on a beach, sitting on a park bench or camping in a park. A trip to the Azores would have been nice, but that's not what I long for. 

What is God teaching me in all of this? What is he teaching you? In many ways, we have been given time and cause to reflect on our lives. What matters most? I find myself drawn to the Psalms, always a favourite, but even more so in these days. "Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust." He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart." Psalm 91:1, 4
Will I be totally shielded from this sickness? That, I don't know, but what I do know is that God is my refuge, God is my strength. When I trust in him, asking for his forgiveness for my sins, trusting in Jesus' sacrifice for me, I am eternally secure and at rest. No matter what happens, my treasure is in Heaven, not on earth. I will eternally be with Jesus my Savior and God my Father. In some ways my life here on earth is like an interruption. It's a sojourn in a foreign land that I am passing through on my way to the promised land, which is for me, my Heavenly Home. Will you join me there someday? Talk to God about it. He can be your refuge too. He can lead you there. Is this an interruption or a divine appointment?