By: Dr. Steven K. Parker
“Let the student share his material goods with his teacher. Don’t let anybody pull the wool over your eyes—you can’t turn up your nose at God! For a man harvests exactly what he plants. If he plants the seed of materialism, he will reap the rottenness of materialism. And if he plants the seed of spirituality, he will harvest the superb life which the Spirit produces. So let’s not give up the good fight, for our harvest will come in its own good time if we keep on keeping on. Every chance we have, let’s work for the good of all, and especially for the members of the church.” (Cotton Patch Gospel Galatians 6:6-10)
Doing All the Good We Can
I’ve learned something over the course of the last twelve months: pandemics are frustrating. When a global pandemic hits, things I used to take for granted, like running into the grocery store or sitting down at my favorite restaurant are now impacted by frustrating inconveniences. Pandemics cause political mayhem, with people on opposite sides of the isle yelling at each other and creating more wedge issues than they resolve. During a pandemic, that political instability coupled with global uncertainty causes the economy to lag behind, hurting businesses, workers, investment accounts, and college funds. With one child in college and one starting in the fall, that last concern has been a regular source of anxiety for Lisa and me. More frustrating than those things are the relational impacts of this virus. I don’t get to see my loved ones as often as I like. Gathering for in-person meetings and fellowship becomes wrought with challenges and, as an extrovert, I yearn for that physical human contact. I’ll say it again: pandemics are frustrating. I’m grateful that I’ve only experienced one pandemic in the forty-four years I’ve inhabited planet Earth!
I attended a zoom meeting last night that began with the question, “When are we going to do meetings like this in-person again?” and concluded with one person asking for prayer because he’s Covid-positive and his wife is getting tested today, another asking for prayer for his wife and daughter who still aren’t over the effects of the coronavirus they battled in October, another seeking prayer for his daughter and son-in-law who are first responders, a teacher needing prayer because his school was shut down after multiple staff members tested positive for the virus, and someone asking for prayer for a non-related illness that has plagued him, caused anxiety, and made him more vulnerable to Covid-19.
That meeting’s concluding prayer reminded me that there’s so much more going on right now than my own felt needs, frustrations, and inconveniences. People are hurting. Families are grieving. Many are afraid. The unsettled nature of this environment has produced a great deal of fatigue and anxiety. What can we do when we face challenges with seemingly no end in sight? I can think of two things. (1) We can pray. We can pray for grieving families, medical professionals, teachers and students, and small business owners and people who are out of work. In our prayers we can reach beyond ourselves and bring the pain of our neighbors and sisters and brothers in faith before the God who can strengthen us through every trial. We can pray. And (2) We can do good. We can make the choice to trade with the businesses of friends and neighbors who are struggling. We can seek out businesses owned by church members and show them our faithful patronage. We can do our part to try and help them keep their doors open. We can also send encouraging text messages to struggling students and teachers. We can say, “Thank you,” to a teacher, principal, police officer, fireman, or nurse. We can mail someone a handwritten note of appreciation and drop a gift card in it for a cup of coffee or a cold drink. We can arrange to have a hot meal or a bag of groceries dropped off for a family battling Covid-19 or another illness. We can do good.
The opportunities to pray for one another and do good to one another are endless! We just have to make the conscious choice to spend a little bit less time focusing on ourselves, our own frustrations, our own needs, our own problems, and our own prideful solutions to the ills of the world and more time focusing on doing good unto others. In that process we just might find our days growing a little brighter as we brighten someone else’s day!