Did you get the COVID-19 vaccine? Do you want to get the COVID-19 vaccine? Maybe you have, maybe you’re waiting, or maybe you have no interest at all. Well, as a nurse, I have seen the pandemonium related to this terrible virus; and I have seen, up close and personal, the devastation, fear, and anxiety that the whole ordeal has wrought on many. Many are very hopeful about the vaccine to wipe away many of the problems and inconveniences the disease has caused. Yet this article is not going to address the efficacy, benefit, or detriment of the vaccine.
We Need a Prayer Vaccine
Watching what I have seen on my job, and with individuals close to me that have experienced the effects of the virus, my thoughts have instead been focused on the reality of the spiritual vaccine that every Christian needs on a daily basis to get through the times in which we are living. The physical reality of the virus is one thing; the spiritual reality is another. Whether or not you receive the COVID-19 vaccine, every Bible-believing Christian is going to need a prayer vaccine.
Matthew 24 tells us exactly what is going on right now. In verse 7, Jesus says that there are going to be pestilences, which are defined as contagious or infectious epidemic diseases. Going down a little further, He says in verse 8 that all of these things are just the beginning of sorrows. How are we to inoculate ourselves spiritually in these perilous times? How are we to deal with the ever-present stressors related to these sorrows, as well as those that are yet still to come?
Psalm 91 gives us a clue. The first three verses tell us that we have to dwell in a close, secret place with God. I believe that the secret place here referred to is a place of prayer. Matthew 6 verse 6 says that when we pray, we should enter into our closet, and when we have shut the door, “pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” Prayer: the secret inoculation that gives us the stamina spiritually to get through the awful times both happening now and to come.
But this resource should be no secret to the Christian. Back to Psalm 91 verse 3, we are guaranteed that as we abide with God in that secret place of prayer, He will deliver us from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.One way or another, God will deliver His people. Be it through death, which is a peaceful sleep, until He comes to resurrect His faithful followers in the first resurrection (John 5:25,28-29); or through a miraculous deliverance in this life, as we go through the times of pestilence, war, destruction, and finally His second coming. It is a win-win situation for the Christian who is abiding in Christ!
I have experienced my own times of anxiety as I have dealt with the novel coronavirus and its effects. Acquaintances have died. Coworkers and residents have become very sick. I have had to constantly remind myself of the promises of God through prayer in many situations that have been stressful and overwhelming. I have on a daily basis been praying and claiming God’s promises — because God cannot lie.
"Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful [anxious] for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:4-7
"The honor of His throne is staked for the fulfillment of His word unto us."1
"All His biddings are enablings."2
Such are some (among many) of the inspired promises with which I inoculate myself over and over. His Word and His faithfulness have been keeping me. I am not very often anxious, despite everything seeming to be quite out-of-control, and everyone else around me being on edge. I cannot explain the peace of God that has been, more often than not, keeping my heart and mind; it passes my understanding.
Call to Action
Prayer: the Christian’s best vaccine!
All scripture taken from the King James Version.
- Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons (Battle Creek, Michigan: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1900), 148.
- White, 333.
