Looking for God in the Pandemic

Some days I really struggle to find God. It’s easy when I sit on the screened porch and watch the birds and listen to their sweet melodies wafting through the breeze. Or when I smell the sweetness of the blooming shrub growing nearby. But other times it’s a challenge.

Like in Facebook posts! I recently read one from a person who (I believe) belongs to a more conservative Christian denomination than mine. She announced that she doesn’t wear a mask because she has faith in God and when it’s her time to go, then she’ll go. But is she considering that she may take some of us with her?

Then I look at pictures of Gatlinburg and the crowded streets with tourists from all over. I spoke with our own Bill Broome recently. He and Marion are spending a good deal of time at their home there. He said he no longer walks down to the city because of the intense crowds. Even the parks are full.

I realize we are given free will. But when others use their free will in dangerous and inconsiderate ways, I struggle. Why can’t they think like me? Why don’t people wear masks for the protection of others? Why can’t the young man on his motorcycle going through my neighborhood obey the speed limit rather than speeding through and causing a danger to others? Why do some people still hate those who don’t look/worship/love/believe like them? Free will is free will, whether I like it or not, I guess, and people are free to not think like me.

Still, I struggle. The devotion I read this morning was about finding joy. I can easily find joy sitting on my porch or hugging my dog, but once I leave my sanctuary or turn on the news, everything changes for me. Where is God? Where is Divine intervention? Why are people getting so sick and dying? What I tend to forget is that struggling and dying have been happening since the world began. Middle and upper class people in the U.S. tend to believe we should be immune to trauma. But think about the Middle East and the generations of people living in a war zone; or the slums of India where people barely exist and starve daily; or our own housing projects where drug lords rule and so many are trapped by their circumstances, often due to unjust social structures. The Divine is ever-present in all circumstances, we just need to be open to seeing the Divine where we don't normally think to look.

I am fortunate, but I ache for others. I cannot fix their challenges, but I can pray for them. So pray I must. It is what I am called to do. I don’t do it well or nearly often enough, but if I keep at it maybe I will find joy in the presence of God. Maybe I will find peace in knowing God is with all of us, despite our circumstances or choices. Maybe I will find hope for the future of our world. Maybe I will avoid the trap of despair. Maybe I will feel the Divine Presence in the midst of it all. 

Please join me in prayer…….