I’m thankful for words that I hear of our church family taking care of one another. I hope by now one of the elders has contacted you. Specifically we want to pray for you and with you but also to learn of ways your church family can be of help.

This is simply a prompting in that regard. Particularly, you will know of or wonder about some of our primarily elderly church family who do not use the internet. Would you check up on them?

If you hear of needs we have people standing by to go to the grocery store, pharmacy – Susan has even delivered library books!

It’s early days in the COVID19 wait. Our Heavenly Father gives us infinite grace. It is up to you and me to appropriate that grace each day. I’ve no idea of the end result of this dilemma. Just this morning I have read that the virus will peak by April 15, April 30 and June 15! Take your pick! Then, “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!” (Psalm 27:14)

Martin Luther wrote what is a famous essay to fellow pastors during the Bubonic Plague in Europe. You can find it online. It is well worth reading. He wrote it in 1527. Here is a passage that has resonated with me.

. . . I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance infect and pollute others, and so cause their death as a result of my negligence. If God should wish to take me, He will surely find me and I have done what He has expected of me and so I am not responsible for either my own death or the death of others. If my neighbor needs me, however, I shall not avoid place or person but will go freely.

That is a good picture of the balance needed between “social distancing” while continuing to care for the needs of others. And, we pray for protection without fear of death!

Some things for perspective:

From Elizabeth Pezoldt in Bolivia –

Our hours out have been restricted from 7am to noon every day and only 1 family member is allowed one day a week to leave to get groceries depending on what number their I.D. card ends with. I can go out on Wednesday to get more groceries because Wednesday, people whose ID card ends with a 5 or 6 are allowed to leave their home for a few hours. These rule have been strictly enforced – over 41 people have been arrested and fined for breaking the curfew. The fines range from 1000 to 2000 Bolivianos ($150 - $300). The grocery stores, pharmacies, Home Delivery Services (bread, dry foods, meat, dairy, eggs, water, and propane gas can be delivered) and gas stations are open generally.

From a friend of mine from long ago. He is associated with a ministry in the Congo –

Our society is a cash economy where most families live on $2 per day or less. Many do not have food to eat. The consequences of this shut down are starting to bite. Workers who are paid per day don’t have food for their families and have started complaining to governments which are not willing or able to help with basic food supplies so that families, especially poor families, can have at least food.

This morning alone Eden Mission received calls from 11 families in our program appealing for food assistance, saying their kids are starving. (I don’t mean the starving American kids normally refer to. I mean two days without food and no hope for a meal even tomorrow. Kids crying of hunger and parents looking on helplessly.) They fear to get out of their houses because police will arrest them. They are placed between a rock and hard place. The risk takers are now getting out and because there is no job for them to do, they will grab whatever they find. So more violence and lawlessness is likely to happen.

Sunday we will study “The Triumphal Entry” together. Prepare by reading it in all four Gospels. Matthew 21:1–11, Mark 11:1–11, Luke 19:28–44, and John 12:12–19.

Personal. Son Isaiah and wife Jo Anna had a little girl, Ella Marie, Saturday, March 28. She is our fifth granddaughter joining 12 grandsons.