We arrived back from a vacation in the middle of March and during those 8 days away the world had changed. We would be in quarantine for 14 days, both of our offices had moved to remote working and schools and preschools had closed. It certainly was a huge shock to the system but what I found even more challenging was the question of managing the emotional burden. I found the news of what was happening around the world devastating.
If we are not careful we can fall into one of two traps when it comes to engaging with the global scale of this pandemic; either letting the details totally overwhelm you on the one hand, or choosing to bury your head in the sand on the other because, lets face it, the challenges that are right in front of us are big enough.
I was unable to avoid the reality of what was going on. My work for the British Government required that I dial into briefings, read reports and be kept up to date with both the COVID-19 situation here in Canada and in the UK. After a morning of several conference calls I received an email to inform us that a 37-year-old in the Foreign Office had passed away that previous evening due to COVID-19. I had never met the person, but it was the straw that broke the camels back in terms of my emotions and a wave of sadness hit me hard. Sobbing in the kitchen I knew I needed to turn my attention to God and ask for His help.
Sitting with the children that afternoon I decided to make a prayer board with them, together we wrote down everything and everyone we could pray for during this pandemic, from world leaders to scientists, health care workers we knew and even whole nations that were badly impacted. I wrote out verses about prayer: My favorite and most frequently repeated:
Philippians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God.
And now we pray as a family for these big things, they are short to the point prayers but are prayed with hope and faith. My parents in law later told us that they were setting out time morning, lunchtime and evening to pray, they said this is how they will play their part to fight the pandemic. I was stirred to pray for the global situation, I wanted to see the virus halted but also for many to turn to God during this time. My conviction of the importance and necessity of prayer was growing.
A tweet by a respected Christian leader about UNITE714 grabbed my attention. Many church leaders felt stirred to see God’s people come together from across the world in united prayer. Now millions of believers set their alarms at 7.14am and 7.14pm to pray for God to halt the spread of the virus, to heal the sick, to comfort the grieving, to provide for those adversely affected AND to bring spiritual revival across the earth.
In this video I chatted to Rhys about it, there is a weekly prayer guide and lots more info on UNITE714.com
This is a wonderful opportunity for us to stand together with millions of other believers and lift our prayers to a God that hears us.
2 Chronicles 7.14
If my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
