As Ecclesiastes 3:1 states,” There is a time for everything,” and implied in that passage is that there is a time for and a time no more. Our New Hope Daily devotionals are ending. Their purpose has been fulfilled. They have helped to carry us and our church through a difficult, challenging time filled with “unknowns” that none of us could ever have imagined just a few short months ago.
And yet, here we are. Some of us have experienced far greater loss than others. Members of our families and those who we have been privileged to call “friends” have suffered and/or moved on to be with our God. In many ways, our stories mirror those that we remember from 9/11. Those memories made little sense then. In some ways, our newest memories make even less sense now.
I, long ago, realized the importance of understanding God’s word in scripture but I have come to the conclusion that to understand God, creator of all the universe and everything in it was, perhaps, the greatest sin of arrogance that I could possibly enter into. For me, He is God, and it’s just that simple.
That having been said, I am still left to wonder and to enter into the arena of the question, “Why Lord, why have You allowed this COVID-19 to occur?” The conjecture that accompanies the answers to that query are both obvious and endless and, to some degree, perhaps pointless. More meaningful and more relevant questions might be: “What has all of this meant to me? What have I experienced and learned? Where do I go from here?
For me to get a good handle on what might be the answers to those questions, I had to back up a little. Maureen and I are new to New Hope Christian Church. In just three and a half months since joining New Hope, prior to the shutdown, we had experienced a great welcome from so many, a true outpouring of Love. There was no doubt that we were right where God wanted us to be. We walked away, Sunday after Sunday, small group meeting after small group meeting, praising God, saying, “Can you believe what God is doing?” We had so longed to be with fellow Christian that not only were incredible believers but folks who we immediately felt had been our dearest friends for years. For us, the need to be “us” and to be able to contribute and to love unconditionally was not only important but imperative. And here it was. PRAISE GOD!
Then came the virus. At a time when there was so much separation, New Hope Daily helped to not only “fill the gap,” it gave Maureen and I and all of us an opportunity to ‘experience’ our friends and new friends on a completely different level. Their ‘revealing’ stores and commentaries, their shared experiences of God and His importance in their lives; their ‘This is what I have learned and wanted to share’ day after day, gladdened, in a thought provocative way, those of us who were blessed by the sharing of their devotionals.
Did I read them all? No, only most. Do I wish Guthrie would offer a complete presentation of all the devotionals for us to read and reread (hint, hint). Yes, especially for those of us, like me, who sometimes, ‘forget’. But my memories of this challenging time in our lives tend to also splinter off into other dimensions and directions.
At a time when ‘the world’ encouraged us (oftentimes, correctly) to be reclusive and sedentary, to ‘stay home’ in more ways than one, we were encouraged by our church leadership to reach out to each other, to pray, to bring food to the church for those in need, to continue our small groups and to involve ourselves in the virtual realities of our Sunday worship.
Our focus was directed towards God and His plan, with an eye on the reality of the here and now. During this time, in my conversations with our membership, I never heard a single word of fear, only the conviction of faith. There has constantly been an underlying chorus of assured hope in the words of those who have shared their stories with me. We all know that God is going to use all of this for His greater honor and glory. And, as we all know, in the end, God wins!
Still, for me, there remains the nagging questions I mentioned before: ‘What does all of this mean, what have I learned, what happens next?’ As you can see, some of the answers are beginning to fall into place. Some of the answers will become evident over time. But I know that things will never be the same. Things like spontaneous handshakes and hugs may well be a thing of the past, at least for a while. Social distancing seems to have taken their place. But there is so much more to consider.
What I guess I’m really challenged by is the question of what may God be calling me to as far as my walk with Him? What are His expectations for me for the future? What has to change? What are the ‘new beginnings’ I may be asked to embrace? Only God and time hold the answers. And, of course, the choice to respond is mine. I know that He will give me everything I need to move ahead and to be a part of His plan for the future. I doubt that it will all be a ‘Sit back and enjoy the ride’ experience but I am looking forward to it, none the less. And I am so blessed to have so many wonderful new friends to share the journey with.
Thank you all and blessings. George Cooper along with his wife Maureen are blessed members of New Hope Christian Church.