COVID-19 Novel Encouragement Sample

DO IT AGIAN

"The God of heaven is the one who will give us success." (Nehemiah 2:20)
"for the gracious hand of my God was upon me." (Nehemiah 2:8)
"for the people had a mind to work" (Nehemiah 4:6)
"Our God will fight for us!" (Nehemiah 4:20)

My wife and I were in Beijing in the early 2000s when another contagious virus was spreading and causing world havoc, panic and fears with China at the epicenter. That time it was SARS and I remember the same concerns, fears, and precautions taken for cleanliness. Masks were the standard-issue protection and restricted travel the norm. So this time, when the Coronavirus started spreading and becoming the focal point of the news, it brought back all those memories, concerns, and anxieties but also some fond memories. I remembered spending more time with friends and family as well as serving alongside fellow members of BICF as we gathered for prayer meetings and made care packages for the thousands of medical workers fighting the SARS virus.

As the coronavirus has reached similar or higher risk levels as SARS, I thought of Nehemiah and his heart and grief for the walls not being rebuilt around Jerusalem, leaving the newly rebuilt temple, God's city, and his people unprotected. It made me think about how he took that burden on himself to take action in a time when there was hopelessness, fear of action and opposition. He took the task to serve God and his beloved people. As he had prayed and known he should take action, he received King Artaxerxes' agreement to all he asked: “for the gracious hand of my God was upon me.” (2:8) After Nehemiah had assessed the situation, people became aware of his plans, and opposition started, he was not derailed but knew “the God of heaven is the one who will give us success.” (2:20). And after the work had started and real threats started mounting, he instructed the people to pray, trust in God, and to be ready for attacks. So he reminded the people that “Our God will fight for us.” (4:20)

During this time of restricted movement and anxiety amongst ourselves and others, I pray that we can be a shining light of faith, confidence and realistic action. Let us pray for God's strength to reach out to others to provide encouragement, support, prayer and confidence that the 'God of heaven will give us success' and 'that his always gracious hand is upon us' in this endeavor. And like Nehemiah, praying and trusting in God's protection yet being practical to take the appropriate precautions to protect ourselves, family and community. "Our God will fight for us," so let us also fight for Him and not succumb to the challenges or despair of this time but be of action to be a light of hope and faith to those around us.

Prayer: Jesus, please help me to balance prayer and action. Like Nehemiah, I want to be cautious yet at the same time proactive and bold!

By Dennis Tang, Shanghai