It’s September! What an unusual year this has been. We all are perhaps longing for a time when things will resume back to “normalcy,” or perhaps as some have remarked, we are getting used to the “new normal.” Regardless of where you are at, we all can appreciate that our world has been turned upside down. There has been anxiety, uncertainty, fear, and even confusion. How can we as believers respond to the changing circumstances around us? What hope do we have? Is there a constancy to help us remain sober and firm through uncertainties? COVID has disrupted our lives in an unavoidable significant way. But it has not changed who God is, neither has it changed his plans, purposes and promises for us as believers.

God’s promises and faithfulness

We need to understand that COVID cannot thwart the purposes and promises of God. His plans and purposes are good, and He is faithful to fulfil all of His promises. We are prone to COVID, and that means, you and I might get it and die, and our loved ones too, or in the Lord’s mercy survive through it. This does not change who God is. He remains faithful and good in all things and at all times. This truth and reality help us overcome our uncertainties, confusions, insecurities and fears. Our circumstances might vary, but God remains constant. Here is a promise Christian, God is your Shepherd, even though you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He is with you (Psa. 23.). This is the time to hold fast to the promises of God and to help one another hold fast to these promises. God has also promised us victory over death. Death is only a shadow, its substance has been consumed by the finished work of Christ in his death and resurrection, and we have an unwavering hope in Christ. The promises of God are fully realized in Christ Jesus.

Our hope

Where is your hope, Christian? Are you more paralyzed by the fear and uncertainties of COVID or are you trusting and resting in the unchanging promises of God? Not only has God saved us from our sinful state and the penalty of sin, but He has also saved us to future glory. We have the hope of glory in and with Christ Jesus. This hope is the anchor of our soul (Heb. 6:19). Writing to suffering saints, Peter reminds them of the future glory that though they may suffer now, they will share in the glories of Christ. We have the same hope, and we have the same end (1 Pet. 5:1, 4, 10).

In our trials, here is our hope, God is doing something in us. Paul reminds us that our light momentary afflictions are preparing us for an eternal weight of glory (2 Cor. 4:17). The reality of COVID and its effects in this world, in our lives, and in the lives of those whom we love is not a waste, but it is all working towards the eternal purposes of God. This is a great source of hope. For us as Christians, nothing can separate us from the love of God, not even COVID. Nothing can disapprove what God has justified, and we are justified by God through Christ. God is committed to the preservation of our faith. Our perseverance is dependent on the unchanging character of God and the finished work of Christ on the cross.

Our call

Our call as believers, therefore, is to grow in grace as we hold fast to the promises of God and help our brothers and sisters do the same. This is the time to hold fast and apply the gospel intentionally. We have no other hope other than that which the gospel offers. Though we hope COVID to end, it might be here with us for a while. Our surviving will not be apart from the unchanging promises of God in the gospel. Our ministry and service to one another need to be gospel-centered. Even as the author of Hebrews reminds us, the day is drawing near, therefore, “let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another…” (Heb. 10:24-25).

Dear saint, we can overcome our fears, anxieties, and uncertainties when we hold fast to the unchanging promises of God in our salvation in Christ Jesus. We can also help others overcome their fears, anxieties, and uncertainties, by pointing them to the unchanging promises of God in our salvation in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Grace and peace.