What the enemy meant for evil, God turned it for good
Zack Ross
When I wrote my last column on the need to keep the “heavenly vision” alive in this uncertain age of a global pandemic, little did I know that I would be one of the next carriers of COVID-19. Yes, I am currently writing this while recovering from the novel coronavirus.
I’ve had all the expected symptoms and side effects: cough, chills and fever, body aches, loss of smell and taste, and extreme fatigue and exhaustion. However,
I’ve also experienced some mental and spiritual side effects that I did not anticipate: anxiety, fear, and yes, depression. If I can be perfectly honest, there have been several moments in this slow recovery process where I’ve felt like I was eating my “words of faith” from my last column. It can be extremely difficult to maintain a “heavenly vision” when your earthly body has a poor prognosis.
On my sixth day of quarantine and recovery, I was particularly discouraged. I was praying to the Lord with several questions racing through my mind: What am I going to do if I can’t recover from this virus? At what point do I need to get to the hospital? Will it be too late if I don’t get there in time? In that moment, in one split second, the Lord spoke directly to me, piercing through every worry and troubled thought, and simply said, “I will get you through this!” Instantaneously, all of my anxiety and fear was calmed. What a mighty God we serve!
Having a “heavenly vision” does not give one a “free pass” on life’s trials and tests. It does, however, provide a source of strength and victory while going through those dark times. It’s no wonder
the psalmist declared, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” (Ps. 23:4)
Sometimes, the truest vision of our God’s power and victory is formulated and maintained in the valley of despair. A beloved song of mine illustrates this concept so well: “Sometimes it takes a mountain; sometimes a troubled sea. Sometimes it takes a desert to get ahold of me. Your love is so much stronger than whatever troubles me. Sometimes it takes a mountain to trust You and believe.”
It turns out that my brush with COVID-19 did not cause me
to eat any of my words of faith. Instead, it added more words to my testimony of His provision and power. What the enemy meant for evil, God has used once again for good. I do realize that, sadly, recovery is not everyone’s story with COVID. We have lost many precious saints to this awful virus. My heart goes to everyone grieving one of these losses. I do repeat, however, that God has not been surprised by any of these events. What has been a shocking year to many of us, has been another year of complete control for the Alpha and Omega.