Fear of the virus paralyzes us, blinds us to see only the negative and what can go wrong, and deceives us into thinking there is no hope. “We find ourselves afraid and lost. We were caught off guard by an unexpected, turbulent storm. We have realized that we are on the same boat, all of us fragile and disoriented.” (Pope Francis) It is okay to be afraid. We all feel fear sometime. The problem arises when fear overpowers and paralyzes us. When we are under fear, our immune system doesn’t work well and is very vulnerable to the virus.
Everybody knows the principles for maintaining good physical health. Eat nutritious food, exercise regularly, drink clean water, keep away from junk food, have plenty of sleep and maintain healthy and loving relationships. Simple and clear. Most of us know what to do but we just have a hard time putting it into practice.
How do we boost our spiritual immune system? By “exercising patience and offering hope, taking care to sow not panic but a shared responsibility, finding the courage to embrace all the hardships of the present time, abandoning for a moment our eagerness for power and possessions and developing, embracing the Lord in order to embrace hope, and praying, offering and interceding for the good of all. These are our victorious weapons.” (Pope Francis) In a word, by taking up our own cross in such a time like this.
I called and comforted the people who took an autobiography class with me in the Senior Center. Most of them were filled with fear and anxiety. One of the members was not. Her voice was very cheerful and bright. The 95 year old lady was always very humorous and always optimistic. Now due to the Coronavirus, she is confined to her house alone. I greeted her, “How are you doing these days?” To my surprise, she responded to me cheerfully. “Pastor, I am very busy cleaning all the windows of my house, which I postponed before.” No matter how she felt, she trusted her God and placed her worries in God’s hands. She has a strong and healthy spiritual immune system. I was so encouraged by her strong energy and positive attitude. Where does her peace of mind come from? Trust in God! Faith is a kind of immune system filtering out or fighting back our fears that otherwise would paralyze all our activity.
Prayer:
Lord, you ask us not to be afraid. Yet our faith is weak and we are fearful. Today, Lord, we trust you that you will not leave us in the midst of the storm. Amen.
Pastor Seok-Hwan
