Pray, Hope, Don’t Worry….And Wash Your Hands, too

For what it’s worth, I figured I’d share some of my thoughts on the Corona Virus.

But firsts, the facts. Here’s a link to some of the latest facts about the Corona Virus in the US. I don’t know about you, but this is not being reflected in the craziness that is filling the headlines.

Having said that, this should be taken seriously. We should actively try to slow the spread so the critical cases can be taken care of and lives saved.

So, yes, let’s think of the vulnerable around us and wash our hands and stay home if we’re sick or if quarantines happen — but let’s not panic or be overcome by fear. You can do both at the same time!

Most of these were shared over on my Instagram earlier this week, so you can always follow along and join in the conversation over there.

God bless us all, and let’s keep praying for an end to the Corona Virus and for the protection of us all — especially the elderly and vulnerable among us.

How to approach our fears:

There are a a number of translations for Luke 8:50, but the one above is my favorite. It’s been speaking to me a lot lately.

In the Eucharistic prayer today the priest prayed, “Free us from all useless fear” and all I could think was “Amen! because there seems to be a heck of a lot of “useless fear” going around lately.

I might even go so far as to call it a frenzy of fear in some circles — and the 24/7 news cycle isn’t helping any, either👎🏼. Honestly, I get it, but the truth is, most of it amounts to a whole lot of wasted energy.

True, sometimes life doesn’t turn out the way we want it to — and sometimes our prayers seem to go unanswered — but prayer should not be about “getting what we want”. Nope, it doesn’t work that way.

But if we are faithful to prayer, it will begin to increase our trust in God and it will begin to change us and our perspective on life.

Nobody said being a Christian was going to be easy — but I can tell you this, sometimes we have to walk through pain and darkness to get to the Light.

Sometimes we need to wait on God to see how He will bring good out of it — because He WILL bring good out of it.

He will come and rescue us the way that we NEED to be rescued — which admittedly isn’t always the way that we WANT to be rescued. One day, though, it will all make sense. All of it!

So wait on Him. Draw near to Him. There is nothing in this world that can truly harm you with Jesus at your side. Jesus I believe. Help my unbelief!🙌🏻

How to combine faith and reason when dealing with the current circumstances and viral doomsday headlines:

Full disclosure: Padre Pio didn’t actually say the “wash your hands” part — but Catholics believe in faith AND reason, so I’m pretty sure he’d be totally fine with my little addition.

Seriously, though, I’m worried about all the fearful faces and conversations I’ve heard as of late.
If you’re feeling afraid, now would be a great time to step away from the newsfeeds and dive into Scripture and the lives of the Saints. They can provide a proper perspective on all the craziness right now.

One thing the Saints and Scripture makes abundantly clear is that God doesn’t want us to be afraid. Nope!

True, He wants us to think about the vulnerable around us and wash our hands and stay home if we are sick— but we can do all that and still maintain a sense of peace and calm at the same time.

Take Padre Pio for example. He loved the sick and started a hospital to care for them. He worked with science to help heal those in need — but he was also a man of incredible faith who prayed for them. You can and should do both!

Today at Mass (so grateful to still have it!) we prayed for everybody suffering from the Corona Virus and for an end to it all. How beautiful that we can practice faith and reason at the same time!

Listen, I’m no prophet and I don’t know the future, but the good news is that I don’t have to. I’m leaving all the craziness in God’s hands and asking Him to work it out. I trust He knows how best to do that. It’s kind of what faith is all about.

So Pray, Hope, and Don’t Worry….and wash your hands, too, people! Peace to you in these crazy times!💛🙏🏼

In times of darkness, put your hope in God. He will not disappoint!

I really feel like now is the time to immerse ourselves in the Word of God, to increase our prayer for our world, get to Mass and confession (while you still can) and let God use even this to bring about some good in our lives and the lives of others.

Let us put our hope in God! We are going to get though this with God at our side! Hang in there, everybody.