Epistle 1 from Cynthia, Ministry in the time of the 2020 Coronavirus

Introduction
Hi everyone,
Today I have written a letter, the first of many. I am calling them 'Epistles from Cynthia, Ministry in the time of the 2020 Coronavirus.'

I have posted an edited version of my first letter here.

Epistle 1 from Cynthia, Ministry in the time of the 2020 Coronavirus:

It's Cynthia here, writing what will be the first of many letters from me.

Well, life has changed again for everyone and not least we people of faith who can no longer gather as we normally do for worship.

How are you feeling today?

It is a worrying time but I believe the measures that are being taken are in the interests of all of society so even though it might be scary and disappointing, we can give thanks to God that decisive leadership and action is happening to 'flatten the curve' and minimise the damage from this virus.

That said, it means even greater isolation than we have already experienced and that may be very hard for us.

Realistically, we will all experience moments of fear in the time ahead. This is understandable.

Fear can be our friend if it motivates us to be careful, that is, staying at home as much as we can, keeping distance between each other and washing our hands and surfaces such as benches frequently but too much fear is not helpful.

Yesterday as EUC gathered for worship, our beloved David reminded us of the words of Isaiah 41:10
"do not fear, for I am with you,
do not be afraid, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my victorious right hand."

We are not in this on our own. God is with us, as always. God is in us and with us. Embracing us with love and guiding us through the wonderfully vibrant and wise Holy Spirit.

Let us be people who draw on this strengthening reality and who dare to hope even in the midst of a crisis like this




What word of hope shall I share with you today? I think today I will share from the Gospel of Matthew:
Matthew 6: 25-34 Do Not Worry
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? 28 And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
34 “So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

I am sure we have all found comfort from this reading over many years and I hope we do today too.

You might like to look outside or go outside and observe birds or flowers to add a visual context to this reading.
I have also attached a picture of a blue wren and our belladonna lilies for you to look at.

You might like to print this reading off or write some of it out on nice paper and decorate it.

Worrying cannot add a moment to our life. It can actually reduce our lifespan by putting strain on our minds and bodies.

God has got us. God has got our backs. God is holding all of creation in love. Let us hold onto that strength and be reminded of God’s generous love as we look at the beauty and resilience a wee bird or a flower.

Remember I am available to you to talk and to pray.
And please don’t hold off because you think I am too busy. I am never too busy to be available to you.

Take care people. Do wash your hands frequently and your benches etc. Do stay home as much as you can.

But don’t isolate yourself. There are other ways of having social contact.

I suggest limiting how much you watch or read about the virus. Small doses are good and please remember to question the sources of what you read. Not everything out there is accurate and even if it is, I believe we can only cope with so much at once.

The peace of the Lord be with you. Look after yourself but also look out for others. This is the way of Love we are called to and follow.

The mind-numbing generous love of God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
Creator, Redeemer and Life-giving Spirit,
Be with you and remain with you always.
Amen.

Fondly,
Cynthia