COVID 19

"Dr. Waldron," the older lady said.  "Do I need to worry about all this virus stuff?"

"Well, Ms. Edna," I said.  "It is a little hard to say..."  And with that, my mind began to race along different paths.

This "Virus Stuff" has a name, given by the scientific community.  It is COVID 19 and while it first showed up in China, it has since spread to over 50 countries and 120,000 people and has caused over 4000 deaths.

It showed up like an unwanted and unexpected visitor to disrupt business and travel, handshakes and hugs, sporting events and church services.  I suppose the hardest thing about it is it's newness.  Even the experts just don't know that much about it yet.

Unlike Influenza, which shows up every year, has a season and then goes away, we haven't seen this particular virus before.  We have no specific treatment for it and we don't know how long it will stick around in our various communities.  We only know that it is really contagious and that it is particularly hard on people older than 70.

As I read various posts, it seems that many are polarized, with some claiming that this is just an extra strong "flu" while others are buying up all the toilet paper in Walmart, "just in case."  It is not surprising that anxiety levels are climbing and it certainly is not entirely due to the media overinflating the story.

The Coronavirus is a big deal.  For people under the age of 70, the death rate is under 1 percent, but for people between 70 and 80 years of age, the death rate was 8 percent in China and for people over age 80, the death rate went up to 15 percent.

The problems result from a combination of things.  First of all, there is no magic symptom that tells you that you have this new virus.  The number one symptom is fever, which is as generic as they come.  Other symptoms include cough and shortness of breath.

Then, testing takes a minimum of two to three days, during which time Americans are notoriously bad at self-quarantining.  If we don't feel too bad, we tend to keep doing normal activities, spreading the virus around our church and work families without too much thought.  Most people probably start shedding virus several days before they have symptoms.

Finally, there is no special treatment for COVID 19.  Antibiotics and to this point most anti-viral agents don't seem effective against it.  Our care for the sickest people with this virus is primarily supportive until their body's immune system can over come it.

It is into this situation that public health officials can probably make the biggest difference.  Limiting large groups meeting can halt the spread of the illness.  Maybe it seems silly to be so aggressive with a "flu bug," but on the other hand, it is far better to be overly aggressive with canceling meetings and events and have this virus stop spreading, than to continue blithely on and wish we had done more when there were only a few thousand cases in our country.

China has been able to contain this virus, but only after 80,000 people got the virus and only with really aggressive quarantine measures.  It is important for us to learn the lessons they learned on ground zero.

We should take it seriously, but also remember that there are bigger hands than ours in control.  Thousands of years ago, the Psalmist wrote, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea..." (Psalm 46:1,2).

We can have confidence.  Our health care workers will do all they can to take care of people in need, but most of all, our God will be the refuge and place of safety for us to go to when everything seems designed to produce anxiety in the hardest headed of us.

So I come back to a simple verse I learned a long time ago.  "When I am afraid, I put my trust in you." 

I don't have all the answers and neither do all of the public officials in charge of the Coronavirus response.  But God is never at a loss and when I am most afraid, that is also when I need to trust Him most.