Faith on the frontline of coronavirus
March 31, 2020
from the journal of David Wong, a Toronto Anesthesiologist
Excerpt from Stephanie Morales. Physician Assistant. Faith on the frontline of coronavirus.
“To be honest, when I first got here, it was pretty heavy. Cos you realized the level of despair that the people were going through. People asked me, ‘why you are going to Italy...why are you going to a place where you can get it (infected)’. Jesus said, ‘come follow me’, and where would Jesus go? He would go exactly where it’s the darkest, the hardest.”
“I think the isolation is one of the hardest part of the whole situation...and their families can’t come near them, they can’t be with their kids or their husbands or wives...they are very lonely...I asked them “is there anything I can pray for you? And many of them say “yes” and give specific requests, and many of them are about to cry... their heart rate would be up, they’re so anxious, and after praying, you see that (heart rate) comes down...God’s peace is so good and it’s measurable!”
I kept thinking about what Stephanie did- going into the epicenter of Covid-19 outbreak. Evolution theory says survival instinct is to run away from danger. Yet she defies logic and intentionally run toward it. Why? I am convinced it’s because she heard Jesus saying, “follow me”, as Stephanie said, “He would go exactly where it’s the darkest and hardest”.
In the Bible, Queen Esther was called upon to appeal to the King and save lives of her people for such a time as this. As a health care worker, I believe I am placed at where I am, for such a time as this- in the middle of a pandemic. Yes, the dangers of infection are real and the risks of intubation high. Yet, God has taken away my fear and has given me the courage to bring hope and love, to the sick, lonely, isolated, and fearful.