PANDEMIC EMOJIS

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

 

“The way emoji is being used to describe the pandemic is basically body language for the digital age,” Vyvan Evans, author of The Emoji Code: The Linguistics Behind Smiley Faces and Scaredy Cats, told CNN Business News. “We use language to convey ideas, but part of the meaning is missing” in short social media messages. An entire crop of new emojis has popped up during the Coronavirus pandemic. Smiley faces in masks remind us to cover our mouths and noses for the safety of ourselves and others. Shopping carts are used when we can’t find toilet paper. Hearts show love and concern while we are social distancing. There is even a Covid-19 emoji, the scary green ball with the spikey things, for our convenient use with expressions of fear and anger and just plain frustration with the current situation.

 

But the “praying hands” emoji was used 25% more in April 2020 than in August the previous year, according to Emojipedia, a group which tracks trends and frequency of emoji use on Twitter. Praying hands was the eighth most popular emoji that month, used to express profound thanks to workers on the front line of the epidemic. Praying hands also shows up when people share their concern for those they are unable to see person to person, and they may appear along with the shopping cart to indicate the good fortune of finding that toilet paper in the supermarket. (To date, I have not seen an emoji of a roll of toilet paper, but I’m sure it exists somewhere!)

 

The Apostle Paul told the Thessalonians to “pray without ceasing, giving thanks in all circumstances” because this is God’s will for us (1 Thessalonians 5:16-17). The meaning of the passage is about having a willingness to respond to impromptu reminders to raise a person or an issue in prayer any time. Does including the praying hands emoji in a text or Twitter message count as prayer? Paul tells the Romans that the Holy Spirit “groans” for us when we cannot find the words to pray. I expect the Spirit would approve of using an emoji in place of words.

 

Holy Spirit, guide us in our feeble efforts to offer prayers during this pandemic crisis. Amen

 

Meg Blaine Corrigan tells stories of wisdom, strength, fear, joy and risk-taking. Daughter of a raging alcoholic mother, and survivor of sexual assault at gunpoint, Corrigan has shaken a dismal past and flung herself into the arms of Christ, Who sustains her in her daily walk of grace. She shares with her listeners her incredible story of surviving and thriving through many trials during her seven decades walking this fragile earth. She has been described as a Renaissance Woman, integrating her formal training in psychology and counseling, an enlightening experience as a percussionist for a Polynesian show troupe, and most recently as an inspirational author and blogger, to the delight of all who read her work and hear her speak. Her exposure to many life experiences has enriched her passion for spreading Christ’s word and helping other trauma survivors. She has a master’s degree in Guidance and Counseling and thirty-plus years of experience in the field of counseling and social work.  She lives in Lake Elmo, Minnesota, with the love of her life, Patrick, and their formerly disenfranchised rescue dog Ginger. www.MegCorrigan.com    MegCorrigan@comcast.net

CONSPIRACY THEORY BIBLICAL STYLE

When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’  If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” Matthew 28:12-14

 

Webster defines “conspiracy theory” as “a theory that explains an event or situation as the result of a secret plan by usually powerful people or groups.” Whenever a dramatic situation occurs that could or does affect a large segment of the population, conspiracy theories abound. A famous one has been who killed President John F. Kennedy? It’s hard to imagine why people would put forth a conspiracy theory, especially when they know there is no truth to it.

 

According to the Alliance For Science, “Conspiracy theories…are spreading just as rapidly online as (the virus) does offline.” Some of the top ten are: Coronavirus is caused by 5G networks (it is biologically impossible for viruses to spread using the electromagnetic spectrum); COVID was intentionally created by Chinese scientists as a biowarfare weapon (genetic sequencing has proven that the SARS-CoV-2 virus has natural origins as a zoonotic virus originating in bats); and COVID-19 doesn’t actually exist, but is a plot by the globalist elite to take away our freedoms (for proof that it does exist, see death toll numbers worldwide, in the United States, and especially in New York City).

 

According to Psychology Today, people believe conspiracy theories because they desire answers. Believing makes them feel secure, like they are “in the know.” When Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to many people, the religious leaders paid the soldiers to say His “disciples came during the night and stole him away while (they) were asleep” (Matthew 28:13). That explanation—though false—might have covered the tracks of the ones who put Jesus to death—for a while. But history has shown that the story of Christ’s death and resurrection has survived and been believed by countless numbers of people since its occurrence. Jeremiah 23:16 states, “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Do not listen to what the (false) prophets (say) to you…false hopes…from their own minds, not the mouth of the Lord.”

 

Lord, sustain us with truth and facts during this time of uncertainty. Amen

 

Both candid and humorous, insightful and ponderous, Meg Blaine Corrigan’s memoir, Then I Am Strong: Moving From My Mother’s Daughter to God’s Child, takes the reader through her chaotic childhood with an alcoholic mother and enabling father to a violent assault that nearly ended her life. She populates her tale with vivid descriptions of her parents, other influential adults, the attacker, and her disastrous first marriage. But this story has a happy ending, when Meg finds solace in a God she didn’t think she’d ever believe in, when He gently helps her heal from her past lives and move into the best times of her life. Meg has also written a novel, Perils of a Polynesian Percussionist, about said first marriage, as well as a Christian devotional, Saints With Slingshots: Daily Devotions for the Slightly Tarnished But Perpetually Forgiven Christian, comprised of blogs from this site. Stay tuned for sequels to her last two books! All of her works may be purchased through her website, www.MegCorrigan.com or from www.amazon.com .

STRENGTH FOR STRESSFUL TIMES

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7

 

As a college counselor, I frequently told students about two surefire causes of stress: not knowing what is expected of us and having no power to change things. Professors didn’t always make it clear what a student was expected to do to pass a course, and therefore, the students often felt powerless to make needed changes. Students and I often reviewed the course syllabus with the student, brainstormed ways to better understand the professor’s expectations, and developed decisive steps—however small—to improve the student’s performance in class.

 

As we are navigating uncharted territory with the Coronavirus pandemic, I can see the same two causes of stress are at play in our nation. From the outset we’ve been getting mixed messages about the right things to do and who should do them, and most of us are feeling very powerless. Government officials are being asked to make life and death decisions for us, but many officials are unsure how to proceed themselves. And even when decisions are made, officials are finding that availability of equipment is lacking and supply chains aren’t working as they should. The risks our front-line workers are taking daily to care for the ill and dying are cause for tremendous stress. And individual citizens are torn between staying home to reduce the spread of the disease, and wanting to resume work and travel to pay their bills. On the news tonight, a woman protesting her state’s stay-at-home order said she would rather take her chances of contracting COVID 19 than to sit at home any longer. I sincerely hope she doesn’t have to learn the hard way what that means.

 

Where is God in all of this? We know we live in a fallen world, and human beings have made many mistakes in dealing with this pandemic. Through it all, however, God’s message hasn’t changed: He does not want us to fear what is happening or what’s to come. He wants us to use common sense and the best medical advice we can attain, while trusting God to provide His strength to carry us through.

 

Healing God, shine Your light on the best solutions we have right now, and give us courage to survive this frightening time. Amen

 

Meg Blaine Corrigan is the author of three books: Then I Am Strong: Moving From My Mother’s Daughter to God’s Child; Perils of a Polynesian Percussionist; and Saints With Slingshots: Daily Devotions for the Slightly Tarnished But Perpetually Forgiven Christian. She holds a Master’s Degree in Counseling from the University of New Mexico and has over thirty years’ experience working with survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, war veterans, and other trauma survivors.  Her books may be purchased through her website, www.MegCorrigan.com or from www.amazon.com .

 

THE 1918 PANDEMIC

He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. Psalm 91:4-6

 

My father was just nine years old when his brother Oren Blaine was drafted into the Army in 1918. Oren looked so proud in his picture, and he was excited to serve his country in the World War. But his destination of Camp Funston training camp was believed to be where the Influenza Pandemic began. Overcrowding, a brutal winter, poor sanitation and inadequate medical care created a ripe situation for an epidemic outbreak. On March 4, 1918, a cook at the camp was the first to succumb to the powerful virus. Within three weeks, 1100 soldiers including Oren Blaine fell ill. The family never saw Oren alive again; he died at Camp Funston. From Kansas, infected soldiers were sent to camps around our nation and then to Europe and beyond, exposing countless others already exhausted from war to the flu. An estimated 50 million soldiers died of influenza world-wide, more than all the casualties of the war.

 

“The 1918–1919 influenza pandemic killed more people than any other outbreak of disease in human history. The lowest estimate of the death toll is 21 million, while recent scholarship estimates from 50 to 100 million dead. World population was then only 28% what is today, and most deaths occurred in a sixteen-week period, from mid-September to mid-December of 1918.” (National Institutes of Health) The disease mutated constantly, making it impossible to develop a vaccine. The world-wide hostilities were later called “The War To End All Wars.” And many thought a pandemic that big would never happen again.

 

Here we are again. Why would God “allow” this type of pandemic to hit the globe a second time in a hundred years? Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Our Lord is faithful to keep us calm in the face of any disaster.

 

Jesus, only You can dispel my unhealthy fears and replace them with trust, hope and courage. Amen

 

Meg Blaine Corrigan is the author of three books: Then I Am Strong: Moving From My Mother’s Daughter to God’s Child; Perils of a Polynesian Percussionist; and Saints With Slingshots: Daily Devotions for the Slightly Tarnished But Perpetually Forgiven Christian. She holds a Master’s Degree in Counseling from the University of New Mexico and has over thirty years’ experience working with survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, war veterans, and other trauma survivors.  Her books may be purchased through her website, www.MegCorrigan.com or from www.amazon.com .