Life as we know it, has been turned upside down by a novel virus. People are hoarding TP, emptying grocery store shelves, stockpiling supplies like it’s 1999. Job losses. Worry. Fear. Denial. Social isolation.

In times like this, it really hits home how much we need each other. We are grateful for and need the healthcare workers who put themselves at risk everyday to help other people. We are grateful for and need teachers who not only educate kids but also keep them occupied for hours so their parents can work. We are grateful for and need restaurant and retail workers and all the people, too numerous to list, who provide goods and services to the public.

Several days into this global health crisis, as I read post after post on social media, I had an idea – share a prayer. I pray silently. I am not good at praying in front of other people. As I share my prayers on social media over the coming days, I hope that my personal prayers will help even one person who is struggling during this difficult time.

Heavenly Father, I thank you for your love and protection. Lord, I pray for people who are living in fear of coronavirus. I pray for those who worry about how they are going to pay their bills or pay their employees. I pray for those who have already lost loved ones and for those who are fighting COVID-19 right now. I pray for all of us, the whole world, as we struggle with things that are beyond our control.

Lord, I pray that something good will come from all of this. That we will learn to love one another as we love ourselves.

You’ve got the whole world in Your hands.

God, I thank you for uniquely gifting each of us. Today, I especially thank you for blessing healthcare workers with their talents and for giving them hearts that care about others. Today, I lift up the people in my own extended family who work in the healthcare industry: Cindy, Jamie, Ashley and Gary, Adrian and Cassandra, Garrett and the girlfriend I have not met, Lindy, and anyone I unintentionally missed. Protect them from this deadly virus. Give them courage. Erase all fear. Lord, at the end of their long and stressful days, I pray that you will give them rest.

I lift my eyes up to the hills – where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.

Amen

As I think about how we are all connected, I remember what the Apostle Paul said to the church about unity and diversity in the body (1 Corinthians 12). The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable…

We need each other.

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Photo by Luis Melendez on Unsplash