“Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”  Isaiah 41:10 (italics mine)

**disclaimer-this post may step on your toes**

I am a nurse.  I work in a hospital.  In Dallas.  No, not THE hospital, but one not too far away.  Multiple emails, flyers, and meeting appointments fill my inbox.  The “word” is on everyone’s lips…it fills so much of our daily conversation now.

I was at the dog park after work (still in scrubs) and a lady asked me if I was a nurse.  “Yes,” I replied.  She took a large step back, looked at me with disdain and said, “I’m sorry,” as if she were pitying my profession/calling.  “I’m not,” I replied.  She then went on to tell me all of the “information” she heard from the great and powerful media, and how viruses mutate and how it might be airborne.  “It’s not,” I told her.  She quoted the news like gospel and then asked me if AIDS was airborne too.  Sheesh, lady.  So I educated her for about 15 minutes, until her dog got into a fight with another dog.  She then proceeded to stay on the opposite side of where I was standing in the park.  Just in case, I’m imagining.

Am I an expert in communicable disease, i.e. hemorrhagic fever?  No, I am not.  But as an educated medical professional, I can tell you that gluing your eyes to the news or social media every 5 seconds is not helping you.  It’s creating anxiety and fear and filling your head with the “what ifs.”  Should we be informed?  Yes….from reliable sources.  Not some random website that tell us the CDC is “lying to us.”  You may disagree with me.  That’s ok.  But here is a bit of my humble perspective, should you choose to read it.

Could this become an epidemic?  Maybe.  But did you know that the flu kills thousands of adults and hundreds of children every year?  With an increasing population of non-vaccinated children, we could also be facing epidemics such as measles (which could be deadly), diptheria (which could be deadly), rubella (which could be deadly), and so on.  Yes, this is a scary virus without a known cure.  Yes, it has a high mortality rate.  But, my friends, what has been done, is done.  And cannot be undone unfortunately.  So where do we go from here?

Aside from the fact that the CDC needs to be properly educating and informing healthcare workers on how to protect themselves, and aside from every single person practicing diligent hand washing, I think we can take a good hard look at the Bible and find some help there.  Maybe you’re rolling your eyes at me right now-that’s ok, roll away.

Scripture is FULL of the words “Do not be afraid.”  And by full, I mean, like a verse for every single day of the year, full.  There’s a reason there are more than 360 verses on fear.  God knows our fragile hearts.  He knows our tendency to lose sight of Him in the midst of chaos and turmoil.  He knows our tendency to get carried away in worry.  He knows friends.

If you’ve read the Bible, you know we are not promised “easy.”  In fact, scripture talks about our trials as “sharing in Christ’s suffering.”  Jesus was beaten and nailed to a cross to die a cruel and gruesome innocent man’s death.  He knows suffering.

And then there’s the Book of Revelation, detailing the “end times.”  I am not an expert on that either, but I can tell you it describes war, death, evil, pestilence, and the worst natural disasters we could imagine.  BUT, Revelation also talks about the coming of our Savior King and our rescue as believers.  The day is coming when we will be taken to our Heavenly home….our real home.  Our forever home.

This earth is temporary.  Nothing about our present living arrangement is eternal.  So this is why I’m not afraid….because Heaven is the worst case scenario for me.  Should the unlikely possibility of Ebola become an epidemic and I am unlikely infected, and I unlikely die….Heaven waits for me.  Should the world end tomorrow, I’m ready.  My 35 years has taught me that nothing in this world is worth holding onto when it comes to Jesus.

God is still in control.  This was not a surprise to Him.  The Bible says that “He is over all and has authority over all.”  Yes, let us be fervent in prayer, asking for mercy and protection.  But as believers, we must remember that we are linked to Him.  Held by Him.  Safe in His arms.  We do not control our own destiny.  But we know the One who does.

So sleep well friends.  It’s all going to be ok.