Well, how are you holding up, dear reader? When I checked Tuesday morning, there still were no COVID-19 cases in Stokes County, but we all know they’re lurking just across the line in Forsyth and Guilford. Actually, there was not a single case along the northern state border from Ashe County to Person County. And not even one death in our state. Thank you all for being so careful, but we also thank the Lord!
With all that good news, we shouldn’t be feeling any stress, right? On the outside I’m usually a pretty cool, calm and collected guy, but I know when my heart is racing and suddenly my thoughts, instead of being collected, are all willy-nilly. Last week I began to have that out-of-sorts feeling, so I asked myself, “What is the problem, Jeff?”
Do you know what the answer was? It wasn’t worries over the virus, but it is related. Responding with safer habits has caused my daily schedule to change. I went to the nursing home to visit a patient and was turned away. What! I began to notice my reaction to changes in my life about twenty years ago. Those little changes from day to day cause stress in me, and it’s only getting worse.
At first I thought I was unique in this cause of anxiety, but one look at the stock market tells me I’m not. Sure, market watchers must be careful with their investments, but the slightest feeling of uncertainty can cause huge sell-offs. As one financial expert said, the market is more about perception than reality. Toss a little anxiety into the mix and a whole lot of people are going to lose a whole lot of money.
So, what are we to do, who are stressing right now, even if it’s simply over daily schedules? As David expressed in Psalm 142:3a, “When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then You knew my path” (NKJV). When life becomes this dark tunnel and we can’t see the light of the other side, trust God because He can.
We get all worked up about trivial matters in this life. That’s why Jesus told His disciples, “And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind” (Luke 12:29). How is that possible? “Return to your rest, O my soul, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you” (Ps. 116:7).
The result of that kind of serene thinking is, “The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever” (Isaiah 32:17). Now that sounds a whole lot better for us. I think I’ll take a nap.
Jeff Greene, minister for the South Stokes Church of Christ. First published in the Stokes News, the local newspaper.