"Stay"

Stay at home and wear a mask,

Be extra careful with every task,

Don’t hug or kiss or shake a hand,

Or you might get a reprimand.

Don’t open up, keep it closed,

How dare you even question those,

Who make new rules that guard your health,

No matter that it steals your wealth.

Go shop for stuff at Home Depot,

Put on your mask before you go,

But don’t think you can go to church,

Just worship through an online search.

And politicians that we like,

Every time they take the mike,

I hear them say what we should do,

But never know if it is true.

And politicians, experts all,

That we don’t like, no doubt at-all,

That y’all stay home just like you say,

And please shut up, we’ll be okay.

Folks are sad and so confused,

By what has happened, yet refused,

To do all this, much longer be,

Confined by something we can’t see.

Call me reckless, call me cruel,

Say I want to break the rule,

But trust me, brother, I am not,

I really do, I care a lot.

I don’t want folks to get sick,

Die because this spreads so quick,

Praying for the front line needs,

And everyone who’s planting seeds,

Of love and help and all that’s right,

And struggling with those in the fight,

Against this virus and all it means,

Destroying lives in tragic scenes.

I just want to find a way,

To get past this and I pray,

That God will show us what to do,

The only One who has a clue.

“Be thankful in all circumstances…” (2 Thess. 5:18, NLT)

It’s hard to be thankful in this circumstance. Why? ‘Cause it feels like the whole world is turned upside down. Nobody knows what’s going to happen or what to do about it. There is no precedent for this circumstance, therefore there’s no plan to follow. People are trying. Doctors are trying to save people and find a cure. Politicians are trying to lead in the right direction. Meanwhile, unemployment skyrockets and the economy tanks. If I didn’t know the Lord, I’d be worried. But I do, and that makes the difference for me. I can trust Him. You can, too. In fact we can do more than that. We can praise Him. Just start counting all the things we can think of to give thanks for. Paul wrote this advice knowing full well Christians are not shielded from all suffering. And some suffering happens because we love the Lord. But he still wrote it. In everything give thanks. It’s God’s will.

Lord, help us live thankfully, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Mark Maggiori, markmaggiori.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Mark, and God bless you.