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Battle Call
“For our struggle is not against human opponents, but against rulers, authorities, cosmic powers in the darkness around us, and evil spiritual forces in the heavenly realm.” – Ephesians 6
Two days ago, we listened to the press conference from the COVID-19 task force leaders in America on whitehouse.gov
It was said that the threat we face is invisible.
This virus is invisible, the spread is invisible, and I can think of a few other invisible things this pandemic is spreading.
I watched the hoarding unfold, the greed of many trying to use this for their own pocketbook, and witnessed the fear wrap its spindly fingers around many people hearts with each news cast…
Please know i am NOT writing this in judgement.
Apparently, many of us are about one roll of toilet paper away from losing our common decency.
However, I AM writing this because I know there is a better Way.
Proverbs 4: 23
“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
The invisible enemy has indeed come to steal, kill and destroy.
We’ve witnessed the havoc, chaos, depletion of decency.
And yet, there is an invisible force and a Way that has more power than the all the powers of darkness.
And it is very real.
Some people think that God is invisible.
Or they ask, “How do we know He’s here. Does he even care what’s going on?”
Answer: He cares more than you can even fathom.
The threats man has been facing since the beginning were invisible.
And God knows us so well that He knew we’d need to see it to believe it.
So He sent us His Son.
The invisible made visible in Jesus Christ.
John 3:16
I read this story recently in Mark chapter 2 and feel it is so pertinent to right now. Jesus is having dinner with some tax collectors and “sinners” while the religious authorities are wondering why he’s doing this.—“When Jesus heard this, he told them, ‘Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.’”
Have you heard the call?
The following is summarized advice from the WHO (World Health Organization) Director General for individuals during this crisis—He emphasizes that keeping in good physical and mental health is needed to help fight against COVID-19 if you get it:
First: eat a healthy and nutritious diet
Second: limit alcohol and avoid sugary drinks
Third: Don’t smoke
Fourth: Exercise (keeping a safe distance from others)
Fifth: look after your mental health (reach out, check on neighbors, family, etc) – He stated, “Compassion is a medicine.” Get info from reliable sources
Work together as one humanity
Good advice.
But shouldn’t we already be doing these things?
The difference, I suppose, is that people are finally, actually listening and obeying.
Our external health is important.
But no amount of antimicrobial soap and hand sanitizer can cleanse the heart.
Jesus came to call the sick. He came to call those who knew their hearts needed cleansing. He came to tell and live out stories of kindness; to be an example of mercy, of forgiveness, and of how to live a life of love.
Jesus, God made visible, real; and yet he forces no one to listen to his call. He offers it freely to ALL and allows us each the chance to respond. The opportunity to cleanse our hearts by accepting the redemptive grace of a God who will not rest until everyone has the chance to hear and the option to bow and to confess freely.
And that’s not all. When He ascended to heaven, he left us the gift of His Holy Spirit. A Spirit that lives within those of us who choose to hear his call and accept His gift of grace.
A Spirit that will light our way, counsel us, heal us, protect us, guide us. A Spirit that communicates on our behalf and will never leave us or forsake us.
An ever present Helper in times of trouble.
It is He who who cleanses us from the inside out.
Psalm 51:7 (THE MESSAGE)
Soak me in your laundry and I’ll come out clean,
scrub me and I’ll have a snow-white life.
Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
set these once-broken bones to dancing.
Don’t look too close for blemishes,
give me a clean bill of health.
God, make a fresh start in me,
shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don’t throw me out with the trash,
or fail to breathe holiness in me.
Bring me back from gray exile,
put a fresh wind in my sails!
Doesn’t that sound like good news?
I guess the questions is:
Are you listening?
juleseddy1 