Whenever my life takes turns that are puzzling, difficult, and overwhelming, my prayer becomes a short one. “Lord, where are you in this?” I always get an answer.
These days my thoughts are drawn to Lent—the admonition on Ash Wednesday to retreat to a quiet place to pray and the Gospel for the first Sunday in Lent which describes Jesus’s forty days in the wilderness.
In order for each of us not to become part of the problem, one by one our places of recreation and being together in groups are being denied us. Each of us will find a way to live through the shut-down, but we have choices on how we will do it. Consider where God is in all of this for you today. When the self-quarantine and social distancing are over, we’ll be rushing back to what we’re being denied. How will we look back on this time of opportunity?
Musing on John Nolan’s thoughtful article, let’s add to our prayer lists all of the people who work in the medical profession who are working so hard to care for the sick and find ways to minimize spread of the disease, many putting themselves in situations where they could become infected.
Let's also add the elderly in retirement communities. The Episcopal Retirement Service’s two local facilities, Marjorie P. Lee and Deupree House, have limited access and are not allowing visitors. Those in charge are working long hours to keep these most vulnerable people safe and well.
May God guide and bless us all,
Mary Ellen Baude