“Did you look up to heaven for some kind of answer
and look at yourself and what really matters?”
“Did you dust off that Bible at home?”
These words, penned by country singer, Alan Jackson In his post-9/11 song “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)”, point to the way that uncertain times often cause us to seek out the certainty that comes from faith.
COVID-19 has certainly caused the world to stop in ways we never could have imagined. But could it be that our present crisis is uniquely suited to cut through the spiritual malaise of our culture? Could it be that, even in the midst of crisis, the Good Shepherd is calling out to lost sheep (John 10:16)? Could it be that especially now “the harvest is plentiful” (Luke 10:2)? Are we looking for opportunities in these odd times?
Over the past year, I’ve been reading on the secular age we live in today. As I reflect on many of the observations I’ve encountered on that journey, I am struck by the ways that our present crisis seems to be rattling all the right cages in order to challenge the unbelief of our day. Consider a few highlights...
-Our busyness and distraction has taken a hit. Alan Noble, among others, has noted that we live in an age distracted both by busyness and technology: “Living a distracted lifestyle does more than waste our time, it forms our minds, often in ways that are harmful for deep, sustained thought—the kind of thought so important to religious discourse.(p. 20)” Our present crisis has blown up our calendars, taken away our sports, and even disrupted the inane pleasure of social-media scrolling.
Opportunity: Could it be that we all, believer and non-believer alike, might just find more time to reflect on something meaningful?
-We have been made to think daily about death. In Our Secular Age, Mike Cosper summarizes a point made by philosopher Charles Taylor: “We don’t know what to do with life’s big moments— weddings, childbirth, funerals, and so on— because our secularist account for them is inadequate for the deeper sense of meeting we intuit about them.”
Opportunity: Could it be that some of our non-believing friends are being forced by present circumstances to consider death and its weightiness?
-We have been nudged to think beyond ourselves. Our “expressive individualism” must take a back seat during a global pandemic. “You do you” doesn’t work when “you doing you” might spread a deadly virus to an at-risk population. Maybe it was a hollow life philosophy all along?
Opportunity: Could it be that we all, believer and non-believer alike, might find ourselves longing for something more than just our own personal flourishing?
-Etc. We could go on…
-Our sense of economic security has been shaken: What seemed certain, now doesn’t.
-Our sense of self-autonomy has been questioned: Am I not in control?
-The narrative of “progress” appears to have taken a hit: Is the world broken?
What opportunities do we have here to be salt and light and to love our neighbor as ourself?
These truly are odd times. C.S. Lewis wrote that God “shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” As I’ve spoken with other believers during these odd times, I’ve heard many share about how the Lord has used this crisis to destabilize them and draw them into deeper faith.
Let us remember that our non-Christian friends may have been similarly destabilized.
Let us remember the same Gospel we cling to so tightly right now is the one that they need to hear right now.
In a haunting observation, Alan Cross noted:
“All that was needed to bring the world to its knees was a new virus in a bat in a wet market in Wuhan, China a few months ago. We thought we were strong, that our plans were so well thought out. God, forgive us for our hubris. We are not as strong as we think we are. Mercy.”
Lord, may you use these odd times to draw us closer to You. And may you also use us to draw others to Yourself.
Written by Tyler Recker