I've been wrestling with blogging about this topic for a few months and while I'm personally isolating due to a global pandemic, I thought it was about time to sit down and hash it out.
2020 has been a wild year already. It's election year, so our social medias are filled with propoganda and everyone trying to get their two cents in about the candidates. We're suffering from negative climate change. Photos of Australia and Brazil burning are in my Facebook every time I open it. We're struggling to contain the COVID-19 virus. It is disrupting life as we know it, and it has made most individuals uncertain and unstable.
Amidst all of this, there are individuals who are standing firm in the faith. They know that God's plan surpasses everything that a President can do, is not affected by climate change, and will continue whether we're confined to our houses are not. Most Christians are familiar with Jeremiah 29:11 which outlines God's plans for us, no matter what. Churches across the nation are quoting scripture that calls us not to fear- 365 times- while families are crippled with fear about the future. Churches are calling on their members to Be Still and trust in God (Psalm 46:10).
My question is: are we being complacent and putting all of the pressure on God, or are we shifting the responsibilities to fix these issues to God rather than listening to what He is calling us to do?
Let me be perfectly clear- I am a faithful Christian, and I am living without fear thanks to the one who created me and who has a plan for me. But, it doesn't sit well with me when people say they won't become more sustainable because if God wants the world to end it is going to end. People who are refusing to social distance themselves and isolate because they say that if God is calling them home, it is their time. People who turn a blind eye to the horrible things happening in the media right now because it isn't their problem or it is in "God's plan".
I don't think this is the kind of fearless faith God calls us to have. I think that we are called to trust always in the Lord, but also listen to his plan for us. I think that during times like these, we need to be in steadfast prayer looking for what God wants us to do next- whether that is isolation, donating materials, cutting back on unsustainable products. We can't just expect God to fix everything- we have to trust Him and follow his guidance to do what He is asking of us. That is the beautiful thing about free will. He will show us and guide us, but you have to decide to take up the responsibility to do that.
Let us all remember that God is all good, all knowing, and all powerful. The horrible things happening in our world are our doing, not His. We can't keep turning a blind eye and saying it is in His plan, because it's not. If we look at some of the current effects of COVID-19, carbon and nitrogen emissions in China are at an all time low. The canals in Venice are clear and marine life is returning for the first time in decades. That positive change is because of human choice and is a perfect example of how good things can come from individuals taking action.
As 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 says, God will withhold rain and send plagues on His people to get them to pray, seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways. The key part of that phrase is to seek His face and turn from their evil ways. Prayer has never been just enough- it is only the first step.
So the next time the world is on fire, another school shooting is in the headlines, or another person senselessly looses their life to a manageable virus, think about what God is telling you to do. Is He telling you to shift the responsibility to Him, or is He calling on you to take action in His name?
