In the course of just over a month, our confidence has been shaken. This is not necessarily a bad thing. It is easy for us to hope in things that ultimately provide no security. C. S. Lewis observed during WW2:
Yet war does do something to death. It forces us to remember it. The only reason why the cancer at sixty or the paralysis at seventy-five do not bother us is that we forget them. War makes death real to us, and that would have been regarded as one of its blessings by most of the great Christians of the past. They thought it good for us to be always aware of our mortality. I am inclined to think they were right. All the animal life in us, all schemes of happiness that centered in this world, were always doomed to final frustration. In ordinary times only a wise man can realize it. Now the stupidest of us knows. We see unmistakably the sort of universe in which we have all along been living, and must come to terms with it. If we had foolish un-Christian hopes about human culture, they are now shattered. If we thought we were building up a heaven on earth, if we looked for something that would turn the present world from a place of pilgrimage into a permanent city satisfying the soul of man, we are disillusioned, and not a moment too soon.
~C. S. Lewis, “Learning in War-Time“
We have an opportunity to embrace what millions of Christians have known before us—we are mortal. We desperately need to embrace the lesson of Genesis 11. We are not in control and we are not God. Perhaps, Martin Luther said it best when he wrote these words found lying on the table beside his deathbed, “We are beggars; this is true.” Take this time to depend on the Lord and the hope of the gospel. Here is a guide for your prayer life. Spend time thinking about these passages and praying along these lines.
1. Meditate on the fragility and brevity of life (Ecclesiastes 1:1–11).
2. Meditate on the Lord’s sovereignty over all evil and disaster (Daniel 4:34–35).
3. Meditate on the grievous effects of living in a world under the curse of sin (Romans 8:18–25).
4. Confess your fears and lack of faith (Mark 9:14–29).
5. Ask for greater hope in the Lord’s provision (Matthew 6:25–34).
6. Give thanks for the cross and empty tomb of Jesus. Through Christ God is rectifying this broken world (2 Corinthians 5:16–21).
7. Pray for local and national leaders that they may wisely lead fulfilling their responsibilities to the public (Romans 13:1–7).
8. Pray for those who are especially susceptible to the virus and those who have been harmed by the economic implications. Remember those groups likely feel a heightened sense of fear (Isaiah 58:6–10).
9 Pray for the Lord’s mercy on all people in all nations who are affected by this outbreak (1 Timothy 2:1–7).
Remember it is in vital to spend time adoring and praising God in prayer. This is an effective remedy to our anxieties and fears.
Almighty Lord, you hold the entire universe in your grip. You are not surprised nor dismayed by the events of our world. You remain perfectly harmonious in your triune nature. Grant that we might rest in your provision and take refuge in your protection, so that we might bear witness to your goodness through Christ our Lord, who suffered the pains of this broken world for our sake, and who reigns with you forever, one God, Father, Son, and Spirit. Amen.
*This guide was originally provided to HCBC on March 25, 2020.