May 2020
Reflections of God's Goodness
Our lives have changed. Some people wonder if we can ever go back to the way things were. Pope Francis reminds us that God in His love, walks with us through these difficult times. We have hope because God never leaves us.
“I will never forsake you or abandon you.”
This time of sheltering in place is hard. I must admit that I have times of feeling as though my wings have been clipped! I have everything I need, but there is a resistance to such a mandate. We are used to having control over our own lives. In reality though, for many of us, this is mostly an inconvenience.
Some people have shared that they are bored and feel unhappy or lonely. There is another reality that might help us to see all this in a different light.
There are many who are experiencing deep suffering as a result of this virus. In third world countries, where people were already extremely poor and lacking clean water or access to any kind of health care– what little they had has been taken away. They too have been ordered to, “stay home” and in some places this is enforced at gunpoint.
Here in our own country, people who are poor aren’t bored, unhappy, or inconvenienced–they are afraid. They fear their money will run out and their families will go hungry. Jobs have disappeared in places where there are no other resources available. Some are now homeless because they were already at risk when they had a job. The elderly and people with chronic illnesses are living in fear, and children are coping with anxiety because they don’t really understand what’s going on.
As Christians living under these conditions, what can we do? What should we do?
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.”
He lives in each of us and He wants to love others through us. He told us to bear each other’s burdens and care for one another. We hold on to God’s promises and His instructions.
"Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth."
All of us can pray: for caregivers, the sick and dying, the suffering and the fearful. Some of us can give financially to people who desperately need help or to organizations that are meeting urgent needs. The rest of us can move toward, not away from the suffering. We can check on our neighbors, make a phone call, or send a text or an email. I heard someone say that social distancing doesn’t mean relational distancing! What an opportunity to write notes or send cards, or FaceTime the people you seldom find time for or who need it the most. Remember, we are the only way some people encounter our God.
Be assured you are in my prayers and the prayers of all the Sisters.
Blessings,
Sister Mary Ann Barnhorn, SNDdeN
Blessed is he who considers the poor; The Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.
