Out of Harm’s Way

The LORD himself watches over you! The LORD stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The LORD keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The LORD keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever. Psalm 121: 5-8

As our level of knowledge, life experience, and spiritual maturity differ, so will our reactions and coping skills differ to the stormy trials and tribulations that we face daily. Within three months, the coronavirus has hit our world like an unstoppable tsunami. Without our prior consent, we made immediate changes to comply with the guidelines of the “new normal” restrictive lifestyle to keep us from harm’s way.

Although we have made the necessary changes to maintain our safety, our decision to choose a relationship with God has provided us with a level of safe-keeping that only God can provide. We do not live in a panic mode as unbelievers, nor do we fear or fail to take the necessary precautions to protect ourselves.

  1. By eating a healthy diet of nuts, grains, fruits, and vegetables, our Immune System is nourished and will function to protect us with ongoing strength.
  2. By possessing unwavering faith in God, we boost our spiritual health to a level where we readily depend on God to keep us safe from all pestilence and disease.
  3. By studying the Bible and praying, we believe the promises of our Heavenly Father to protect and provide for us at all times. For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. Psalm 91:11

So you may think, many believers have contracted the coronavirus and recovered/or have passed away. Yes, that is true; even so, it is not up to us to question God’s will. When we place our lives in His hands, then we relinquish our reasoning abilities and our desires by fully trusting in His plans for us.

“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

Living a faith-based life does not guarantee that we will remain alive and well. Our faith is evidence that we love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind, and we believe that there is a reward of Eternal life when Jesus comes again. Until then, we are covered by a spiritual umbrella, our physical, financial, and emotional needs will be provided by God. It is in times like these that we can remember that God, our Creator, the “I Am,” will lovingly care for us. After all, we belong to God, and we give all praise, glory, and honor to God, who is our Jehovah Jireh–our provider.

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. Philippians 4:6-7

Bible Reading: Psalm 91

God, we thank you for the new mercies we received as we awakened to a new day. Thank you for being our provider and for caring for us. We also thank you for keeping us from all danger seen and unseen. As we prepare for Eternal life, please manifest your lovingkindness to those who are suffering from mental and physical illnesses, financial devastation, and brokenness. We ask this prayer in the Worthy Name of Jesus. Amen.

© Sonya Johnson Ruiz 2020, No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes without the written permission of the author.

Trust in the Lord

 

 

 

 

 

The Gold Medal

The International Olympic Committee recognizes 205 countries and regions which are allowed to compete in the Summer and Winter Olympics. It is a highlight of the crème de la crème–the best of the best athletes who have sacrificed and trained to compete and exhibit their extraordinary skills. The Olympic competition rewards the top three competitors who represent their countries with the Gold, Silver, and Bronze Medals.

The American people have focused on the economy since the invasion of COVID-19. We have taken drastic steps to abate the decline of the failing economy and to ensure the restoration of our socioeconomic status as if we are competing for the gold medal. The statistics prove that our mindset is not on the preservation of life.

According to Johns Hopkins University, as of today, April 29th, 2020, the United States has reached 1,012,583 total confirmed cases from the Coronavirus. And the Centers for Disease Control have published that the actual number of cases is higher and differs from the reported number of cases.

In three months, we have risen from 45 cases to a world-record number of coronavirus cases. Illness and death growing disproportionally despite our efforts to curtail its impact has taken a toll on families, and healthcare providers. Essential workers fear for their children, their husbands, and wives as they are required to have face-to-face contact with hundreds of people who depend on them for the necessities of life.

The truth is that most people in the U.S. are ready to move forward with their lives. For those who understand the virulence of this infectious disease, we are given this message: “If you are afraid, then stay at home, but don’t stop us from going on with our lives.” Sadly, the attitude that life will go on, at any cost is reflected in our defeat as we ignore the coronavirus cases and deaths.

The State of Georgia’s governor re-opened the state amid a death toll of 1,015 and confirmed cases of more than 24,400.

Gov. Greg Abbott, governor of Texas, will allow malls, stores, movie theaters, and restaurants to open on May 1st — with 25% occupancy.

Thankfully, God will always have people who possess the wisdom to see beyond the gains and losses of the stock market, and they are standing firm in their beliefs that human lives matter. Many individuals live by the ethical principle, non-maleficence, to do no harm and we value life because we honor God.

Then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being. Genesis 2:7. When I think of our Heavenly Father bending down to pick up the dirt from the earth, creating us in his image, and breathing life into us, the only event that I can compare it to is a newborn baby taking its first breath.I can only imagine how God felt when he looked at the man and woman he lovingly created.

Because of God’s love for humanity, we should be able to proclaim to God every day: “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139:14

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. I Corinthians 6:19-20. Pray for guidance. When we invite God to lead us, our outcome will always end in victory. It is only God who can provide us with the plan to stay out of harm’s way. Stay steadfast and immovable as we continue this earthly journey as temporary residents.

Prayer: God, we worship you, and we praise your Holy name. Your name is above all other names in heaven and on earth. We ask you to forgive us of our sins and shortcomings. Please provide healing, peace, and comfort to those who are fighting this disease, and for the families who have lost loved ones. We pray for the safety of the essential workers who are serving us, and we ask you to protect our families and us. Please give us the strength to continue to live according to your will. Thank you for creating us, thank you for loving and thank you for taking care of us. We ask this prayer in the Worthy Name of Jesus. Amen.

When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. Isaiah 43:2

Love God, Love Others, Love Yourself and Stay in His Presence.

© Sonya Johnson Ruiz 2020, No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes without the written permission of the author.

The New You

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:6-7

How has the pandemic affected your life? The coronavirus pandemic has broken down the determination and destroyed the motivation of many individuals to regroup and develop an alternative plan to continue a productive life. Polluted home environments are filled with smog and the pollution of anger, shattered dreams, domestic violence, and resentment toward those that have done their best to protect us.

There are very few individuals who are still alive that can share their experience of living through the Great Depression. In fact, how many of us remember the H1N1 pandemic that occurred in 2009? Typically, human beings endure the struggle and possess the resilience to push forward despite the tragedies that we face. It has almost been 19 years since the attack of 9/11: The attacks resulted in 2,977 fatalities, over 25,000 injuries, and at least $10 billion in infrastructure and property damage. Wikipedia. We may lack the resolve to move forward from an individual perspective; however, our societies will continue to exist and recover.

Until now, I have never really viewed life from an economic perspective. Of course, money and the sound management of finances are required to maintain and live a productive life. But, this morning, I stepped out of my comfort zone and read a complete financial analysis regarding the breakdown of the retail market during this pandemic.

We often speak of the advantages of living in a nation built on the American dream whose foundation is money. Now we can see the disadvantages of living in a land that is built on Capitalism. Any country with its priorities based on tangible desires will eventually fail. We cannot deny it, we love money. In fact, our wish list never exhausts itself. The drive to possess much more than our basic necessities is evident, the entertainment and sports industries possess billions of dollars from our desire for fun, yet, homelessness and hunger are at an all-time high.

There are many businesses that are necessary to sustain human, plant and animal life. We will always require essential workers to fulfill their duties to provide our basic needs. And those are the businesses that have not failed; the essential businesses with brick and mortar locations like Wal-Mart, Dollar Tree/Dollar General, Walgreens pharmacies, and grocery stores like Kroger are thriving. It was reported that collectively these few businesses–nationwide have 700,000 jobs available. Whether or not this is an actual number of job vacancies, there are opportunities available if you really desire employment.

What about the convenience of businesses that provide services that we no longer have the desire to do for ourselves? Our time is too valuable to do-it-ourselves because we are fixated on the high maintenance of keeping our outer bodies attractive. While the number of cases and deaths increase, many individuals are concerned about the declining condition of their manicures, pedicures, and hairstyles. We have fallen from grace.

There has been a separation, a great divide of the essential businesses, and the non-essential businesses that are providing luxury conveniences, what we have deemed as needful things. For many years, I ran a sole-proprietorship where I developed tutorials for nursing students that were not receiving passing grades and review courses for graduates of nursing programs that had failed their licensure exams. My business thrived for 12 years, even during my relocation to two other states.

When my husband and I relocated to a town that I had previously resided in, I anticipated many clients because two nursing programs were within a 5-mile radius. However, the research revealed that the reputable nursing programs (programs that were not on probation with their State Board of Nursing) had at least one full-time tutor for their students. At that point, I decided not to continue my non-essential business and pursued other options.

The COVID-19 pandemic has identified and produced a separation of what is essential and what is necessary to sustain our basic physiological needs. So why are individuals protesting, angry with a political party, and possess total disregard for Stay-at-Home and Shelter-in-Place measures? It is because we have lost the comfort of our frivolous non-essential services. Our priorities continue to be misaligned as we reach 1,000,000 COVID-19 infections, and the death toll steadily rises.

There have been financial reports of the surge in online purchasing for a very long time. “Online shopping only became possible when the internet was opened to the public in 1991. Amazon.com was one of the first eCommerce sites in the US to start selling products online, and thousands of businesses have followed since.” Online shopping has been trending and maintaining a thriving profit margin for 29 years. Yet, we did not anticipate the breakdown of retail? https://www.miva.com/blog/the-history-of-ecommerce-how-did-it-all-begin/

When a business–small or large is essential, regardless of the circumstances, they have clientele who are loyal and usually have an up-close and personal relationship with the proprietor. And those customers will continue to utilize and support the Small Business owners. Take a good look at your community, there are privately owned restaurants, package shipping stores, animal grooming, and supplies, mom and pop hardware stores, etc.

If most of your spare time was spent in retail establishments, then your life has been deeply impacted by the closure of most retailers. Non-essential businesses such as Macy’s have furloughed 100,000 workers, and Neiman Marcus has filed for bankruptcy. Capitalism has given us a false sense of security and entitlement, and we are willing to take the risks that we deem are necessary to pursue our desires. How many of us are still in disbelief from the swift destruction of our comfortable lifestyles?

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. Matthew 6:19

For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. 1 Timothy 6:10

For individuals who agree and look forward to prosperity, Jesus spoke against storing up tangible possessions. Born in a stable with animals as witnesses, is where the baby Jesus took his first breath. Jesus chose disciples who desired salvation over material things. Have you thought about the fact that Jesus did not even have an earthly home?  And one of the scribes came to Him and said, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head. Matthew 8:19-20.

The time has come for us to identify our essential needs and separate ourselves from the idols of non-essential desires, which are the convenient pleasures of this world.

Keep your life free from love of money and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? 27 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” Matthew 6:25-27

God has blessed each of us with spiritual gifts and talents that we have yet to discover. For us to develop and unlock our hidden potentials and abilities, we have to pray and ask for guidance. When our relationship with God is built on faith and trust, it does not matter if our finances are affected by this pandemic, we know who our Jehovah Jireh is, and we know what He is capable of doing for us.

Will God withhold any good thing from those who love Him? For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

We cannot waver between essential and non-essential. If God is your life, the very air that you breathe, if He is your all and all, then serve Him wholeheartedly!

But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15. Amen.

© Sonya Johnson Ruiz 2020, No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes without the written permission of the author.

Put God Back In America