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My heart so grieved this week.

I read many reports and watched a chilling video. And I understood another level of the great deception we are under. My heart grieved.

Although, I sought to write what I saw and knew, I could not put it all to words.

It didn’t help that this week the Oregon State Health Authority made masks permanent, that which had been required became law. Three police cars roared up to a local Safeway the next day after that ruling, not because someone was holding up the store, or because there had been an incident, but because there was one shopper without a mask on. I heard this from my friend who was there, my heart grieved. We’ve entered insanity. People speak of following science, but it is all smoke and mirrors.

This week as if because things are better in the states the national media is focused on “the crisis” in India. All the data, reported as whole numbers, is skewed for there is no comparable information given. For example, no outlet is sharing that the covid deaths fall far behind those dying daily of diarrhea, roughly 6000. In a country with a population of 1.3 billion, even a death rate in the realm of 3000 – 5000 per day, although definitely tragic, is still small compared to the overall population. It means India falls far behind many other nations in deaths to covid. It would be similar to saying 150 a day were dying in England, which was not even their peak.

The news media also omit in their statistics the fact that the biggest spike is in the city of Dehli. Dehli has the worst air. People there regularly suffer from chronic lung conditions. There is an “oxygen bar” in Dehli, so the wealthy can stop by and get some clean air in 15 minute installments. It makes sense that a respiratory virus would flourish.

Prior to the push for vaccination, ivermectin was being supplied to people, and therefore, Covid was not a problem. But when ivermectin began to be replaced to push the vaccine, the death rate skyrocketed. The media ignores all of this for the media wants to create fear. I read this:

“Vaccination is now being promoted over cheap early treatments that were previously widely available, and while vaccine take-up has increased, so have deaths concordantly as displayed in the graphic from John Hopkins University below. While correlation does not equal causation, most people I have spoken to do not believe this is merely a coincidence. Given the widespread availability of the data online, and anecdotal reports of adverse reactions and deaths, suspicions of the vaccination campaign remain.” (Quoted from article by Jo Nash.)

Look at the case spike in response to the vaccine. And the drop in cases when ivermectin was used.

See why I couldn’t write? I couldn’t put this into words. It felt too big. The lies too pervasive. The truth too distant.

But as if from the Lord on Monday, I typed the title of this post: “Look Beyond Yourself…” and realized something crucial. God’s not dead, nor surprised. God has this and has me and has us. There is nothing in this which is too large nor challenging for God to be at work. These verses came to my remembrance:

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid.”

Psalm 27:1-2

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling…”

Psalm 46:1-3

We will not fear.

In order to not fear I must look beyond myself to God or I will find my heart wearied by the news, the data, the lies, the deceit. I must look beyond the realm of this earth or I will believe the lies as I encounter the sign for “Free Vaccination” at all major stores in the area.

I spoke to my good brother David this morning on zoom. He’s my dear brother in England and as we shared he said he would be preaching in a couple weeks from the life of King Jehoshaphat. I knew immediately the 2 Chronicles story of a people who heard the worst news, a force of more than 20,000 was mounted against the people in Jerusalem. This company was already across the border.

To this news this king gathered everyone together before the temple, and led the people in prayer. As he prayed, the king said,

“We do not know what to do but our eyes are upon you.”

2 Chr. 20:12

It’s this magnificent line in this story. This king turning toward heaven, beyond himself, beyond the crisis come upon him simply trusting God.

I needed this reminder this morning. I needed to remember when forces overrun us, God has a plan, is bigger, is already at work.

For the king, help came. A prophetic word came not to fear, and direction was given to send worship in form of the choir singing praises and thanks to God ahead of the army and the promise: “You will not need to fight this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord who is with you…” (2 Chr. 20:17). Indeed, this is what happened.

Perhaps this is my word today: to send praise ahead of my steps for God has this and us and will bring a victory over the wickedness behind what we are experiencing. For worse than the virus is the efforts to employ it as a vehicle to control, manipulate, and destroy. It looks like it is working.

I will look beyond myself to the greatness of God and have hope.