Just One Page

Yesterday I was in an online prayer meeting of people and ministries connected with Global Mission in the Reformed Church in America. Not surprisingly one of the themes that came up a number of times were connected to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic affects all of our lives and ministries, and in a wide variety of ways. It affects us now, in ways that are known as we try to work within the present restrictions, wherever we might happen to be. And it will affect us in the future, in ways that we can only guess at. Time will as to what the short and long-term effects will be. That is true not just for the ministries at the prayer meeting, but for all of us.

At some point in the meeting I found myself thinking about the text I am preaching this week, Zechariah 8:9-23. Zechariah brings a word from God to the people of God. It is a word that is meant to encourage them during a time when discouragement runs high. I took a picture of the passage in my Bible. It was on p. 1436-7, where the whole passage takes less than one printed page. Just one page in a Bible that runs 1825 pages from the first word of Genesis 1 to the last word of Revelation 22.

COVID-19 challenges us in many ways. For a few people it is just a minor inconvenience, while at the other end of the spectrum it is bringing people's earthly life to an unexpected end. There are a whole lot of effects in between those two extremes. We would rather it didn’t exist and that we could just go on with business as usual, whatever that might happen to be for each of us.

One thing COVID-19 is not is it is not the worst, or most disruptive, thing that has ever happened to humans in history. It is also quite likely not the last serious, or even last worst, challenge that humans, collectively, will ever have to face. Like the passage in Zechariah it is but one page in a very long, and full story. A story that ends with God gathering all who love him through faith in Jesus to be with him forever.

That is where for Christians there is a distinct advantage as we go through this pandemic. We know the end of the story. We know that this is just one page in a story that has a wonderful and glorious ending. We know, without understanding quite why or how, that even in the pandemic "for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)  Among his children, God is working out his purposes right now, bringing good, from his point-of-view, out of what doesn't appear good from our point-of-view.

So be encouraged, like the people Zechariah speaks to. The pandemic is not what we would prefer, but it is also just one page in a powerful story, with a glorious ending.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

If you would like to support the work of the Jicarilla Apache Reformed Church you can do so through RCA Global Mission at this link. You can also contact me at bradkautz@gmail.com.