A Response to the Coronavirus Panic: DON’T PANIC!
A Response to the Coronavirus Panic: DON’T PANIC!
I have been asked to prepare a response to the coronavirus panic in an effort to bring hope to what seems like a world void of hope at the moment.
While everyone else is freaking out, you and I have reason to sit back and rest and relax in peace.
I have two responses to this: one a purely “medical” response, and the other a spiritual one.
First, from a medical perspective, China is already conducting clinical trials using mega-doses of intravenous vitamin C with “promising” results. See full report here.
The researchers point out that low intake of daily vitamin C can be a risk factor for contracting any virus, and should be considered as a supplement to one’s daily diet.
In another study from the 1990’s, even modest amounts of supplemental vitamin C (200 mg of vitamin C per day) resulted in an 80% decrease in deaths among severely ill, elderly hospitalized respiratory disease patients. [Hunt C. The clinical effects of vitamin C supplementation in elderly hospitalized patients with an acute respiratory infection. Int J Vit Nut Res 1994;64:212-19] Why isn’t anyone shouting THAT from the rooftops? Well, many speculate that there’s no money in it for the drug companies. Vitamin C is relatively inexpensive and cannot be patented as a drug. But you can come to your own conclusions about that.
Furthermore, the Surgeon General has gone on record to say that the coronavirus is not a high risk situation for children and young adults, so those most susceptible are immune compromised and the elderly. “If you are a child or young adult, you are more likely to die from the flu, if you get it, than you are to die from coronavirus. So, there is something about being young that is protective.” And from the study cited above, we can see that even the elderly who are severely ill from respiratory disease tend to recover better when taking vitamin C.
From a spiritual perspective, there is even more reason to not panic for the follower of Jesus Christ. Read carefully the following words from Psalm 91:
1″Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2This I declare about the LORD: ‘He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; He is my God, and I trust Him.’ 3For He will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease. 4He will cover you with His feathers. He will shelter you with His wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection. 5Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the day. 6Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday. 7Though a thousand fall at your side, though ten thousand are dying around you, these evils will not touch you. 8Just open your eyes, and see how the wicked are punished. 9If you make the LORD your refuge, if you make the Most High your shelter, 10 no evil will conquer you; no plague will come near your home. 11For He will order His angels to protect you wherever you go. 12They will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone. 13You will trample upon lions and cobras; you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet! 14The LORD says, “I will rescue those who love Me. I will protect those who trust in My name. 15When they call on Me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them. 16I will reward them with a long life and give them my salvation.”
We have to come to a place where we truly trust God’s promises. And there is a condition attached to this promise. We have to abide in God’s presence, seeking Him daily, obeying His commands, and pursuing His presence. That is the shelter of the Most High and the shadow of the Almighty. When we pursue God as the passion of our lives, we reap amazing benefits as a result. But we can’t tap into those benefits if we don’t trust Him, because everything in God’s Kingdom is acquired by faith.
Believe and live! Rest in His presence and His protection. Don’t give in to fear, but “be strong and courageous; do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9).