Maybe a Punch in the Gut is a Good Thing

As I  listened to the news this morning, I heard the number of COVID-19 deaths stated again. I almost moved on without registering it much, and then something hit me.

Many of those people probably don't know Jesus. 

It hit me like a punch in the gut. 

Getting COVID, and even dying, is not a terrifying thought for me. Why? Because I know where I will spend eternity after I die. I am confident that death will be better, that I will go to be forever in the presence of my Savior. 

But many, many, many of those who are sick with COVID and dying do not have that same hope and confidence. Many of them do not know Jesus and eternity will be an eternity of separation from God. 

How many people have died  of COVID so far this year and gone to hell? How many of them died without ever hearing about the hope of Jesus? How many of them died without being in right relationship with God?

Too many. 

What can I do about it? Restrictions and regulations limit what I can do. I can't go offer that hope to someone who is dying of COVID. But I do interact with people on a daily basis who need that hope before they get sick or face death in some other way. 

I could sit here and focus on how much I wish the restrictions would go away, how much I want to go back to normal. I could complain about hearing about the statistics all the time, get angry with my governor for the way he is handling the situation. I could have a plethora of negative responses to this virus. 

I could sit by passively and just wait for it all to be over, thankful that I am safe, that I'm not sick. I could continue to go about life as normal and choose not to think about the fact that people are dying.

But I can't anymore, not after this realization. I have to do something. And what I can do is this: find ways to share the hope that I have in Jesus with my coworkers. They may not be sick with COVID, but they are dead in their sins. They have no hope, whether they catch the virus or not. 

And I have a responsibility, as a child of God, to share the hope that I have, to point them to God. I have a responsibility to pray for them. I must live out my faith. And I must speak the hope that I have inside at every opportunity I get. I feel a new urgency to live out this responsibility I have.

Maybe a punch in the gut every once in a while is a good thing. 

Photo by Leon on Unsplash