Today while I was in the grocery store standing in line at the checkout lane six feet apart from everyone else, the customer ahead scolded at me because my shopping cart was slightly beyond the yellow tape on the floor as I was getting “too close to her space.” My shopping cart was no more than 1 mm beyond the yellow tape! Face mask and gloves in place, the customer ahead of me was clearly ready for battle against any germs and viruses that would dare invade her space … LOL!
As Saint John Paul II once said, “A person’s rightful due is to be treated as an object of love, not as an object for use.”
A couple aisles over, a young father with an energetic toddler sitting in an overflowing cart of groceries panicked and yelped at his child several times for removing her face mask. No doubt the child had seen me a few times throughout the store this morning and wondered why I and many others were not restricted by a face mask unlike her and her dad. I suppose in the mind of a young child, restrictions are no fun and to be free is more fun.
A few weeks since a state of emergency was declared here in Massachusetts, it was stunning to witness panic-buying consumers emptying entire store shelves as if the world was coming to an end.
In reflection, it is amusing to watch from a distance how fear and every level of paranoia have overtaken the psyche, preserving ourselves and our loved ones becomes the priority, and people around us are looked upon as a threat.
God created us in His image and likeness, to be free, to know and to love Him, not limited like a robot programmed to do only specific functions. But God also wants to be in a relationship with us, to be close to Him and to do His will. He gives us the freedom to choose.
Fear and worry are definitely heavy on the minds of lots of people right now. Illness, financial hardship, job loss, health worries, uncertainty about tomorrow … the list goes on. When these feelings seek to tighten their grip on us, let us take a pause and turn our hearts and minds towards our loving Father in Heaven who is always our source of comfort, protection, and healing.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6-7).
Although the coronavirus may be the new hidden nuisance to wreak havoc in our everyday way of living, I often wonder what God may be trying to tell us. To take a step back, to slow down the fast pace of life? To seek Him out in the quacking of the ducks? To take note the change of colors in the sunset? To admire the blooming daffodils in our neighbor’s garden? To be encouraged by the smile from a stranger on our morning walk? Perhaps God is sending a clear message that we have strayed too far and just wants to bring us back to Him, where we should belong. We humans have always loved to be in control; He wants to remind us that He is the one in control. We have to believe Him on that.
On the 15th anniversary of Saint John Paul II’s death today, may we be consoled by this humble saint’s timeless message of hope. May we pray for his intercession and aspire to follow his example of living a life of great faith despite his own personal suffering.
“There is no evil to be faced that Christ does not face with us. There is no enemy that Christ has not already conquered. There is no cross to bear that Christ has not already borne for us, and does not now bear with us. And on the far side of every cross we find the newness of life in the Holy Spirit, that new life which will reach its fulfillment in the resurrection. This is our faith. This is our witness before the world.” ~ Saint John Paul II
JPII, pray for us!
Photo credit: Jorge Zapata on Unsplash
