What makes us think we are entitled to live in a world without
hardships...that we should always be prosperous, have all our needs and wants
met, be free from disease, never suffer loss?
In the United States we have become so accustomed to a comfortable
lifestyle that we forget most of the world is still suffering and that we are
only a generation or two past such times here.
We watch a “reality” show called survivor which isn’t remotely
akin to reality and has little to do with actual survival. It is a foolish game that we watch, because
most of us haven’t dealt with the genuine situation. Hardship for us is going without one meal, or
feeling cold because we forgot our sweater, or having our sleep disturbed by
the neighbor’s dog barking or the occasional bout of the gastrointestinal bug.
We have forgotten that there was a time when hurricanes and
snow storms could not be predicted, when immunizations weren’t available to
prevent diseases and antibiotics weren’t available to treat them, when diabetes
and cancer were an automatic death sentence, when building and maintaining a
fire were essential for warmth and food preparation.
Sickness and death seem foreign and like an unimaginable tragedy
rather than a routine part of life. My grandparents
were born in the late 1800s. Their lives
were so much more difficult than mine.
My paternal grandmother lost her mother to cancer when she was still a
young girl. She lived on a farm where
she worked as hard as a boy. Her father
was physically abusive. My maternal
grandmother’s father was murdered when she was young. She had to drop out of school after the 8th
grade and go to work as a seamstress.
Two of her siblings died young of kidney disease. She and my grandfather lost a baby to
measles. My grandparents lived through
the depression. All of their sons served
overseas in World War II. What have I
suffered by comparison? Very, very
little!
And so we are now in a panic over the corona virus. Some of us will get sick and some of us may
die. We feel as though this is some sort
of personal insult which our government should be able to prevent. Conspiracy theories, finger-pointing and
apocalyptic pronouncements abound.
I believe in a God who is sovereign over human history. I do not know what He is planning or will
allow, but I trust Him to do what is right and what will bring about His
purposes for the world in general and for me personally.
Tomorrow I will get on a plane on the west coast and fly to
the east coast. I will probably use some
hand sanitizer along the way, but I do not feel anxiety about the possibility
of exposure to corona virus or the flu or about the chance of the plane
crashing.
I do not expect my life to be free of difficulties, and I do
not expect my government to be responsible for all my personal needs and
wants. I know I live in a broken
world. Only my Savior can rescue me and
make the crooked straight.