It took an invisible enemy in COVID-19 to put the whole world in a pandemic suffering.
Rich or poor, money has no value against the virus. Strong or weak, no one is immune in contracting the disease. Even the brave and courageous, everyone gets a fair share of fear. Right now humanity is being tested.
To fight an invisible foe, we need an invisible army, Faith
With all churches, temples, mosques, prayer rooms closed due to this pandemic, we need to remind ourselves that our ability to commune with God through prayer is never restricted by these physical structures. Worships and prayers need to continue as an integral part of our daily lives.
And in line with that, here’s an invitation to a weekly prayer and devotion from members of different Christian groups in Abu Dhabi
The groups encourage people to stop for at least 5 minutes and pray at the strike of 19:00 hours – because 19 is the number linked to the virus. They suggest a method to use the first letter of the weekday as a guide on how to pray.
SUNDAY – Scriptures. Pray by using the scriptures like Psalm 91:1-5, Psalm 121:5-8, John 14:27, Philippians 4:6-7 and 2 Timothy 1:7
MONDAY – Medical Personnel. Pray for protection, strength, alertness and endurance for all the medical workers and frontliners.
TUESDAY – Truth. Pray for truthful bulletins and correct information to drown the proliferation of fake news and falsehoods.
WEDNESDAY – Wisdom. Government leaders need great wisdom as they develop and implement necessary guideline, measures and strategies to protect their people and the nation.
THURSDAY – Triumph. Pray for scientists and researchers that they may be triumphant with a vaccine very soon.
FRIDAY – Faith. Pray that instead of being a panic-demic, we will choose to trust God more.
SATURDAY – Sick. Let’s pray for the complete healing and full recovery of the hundreds of thousand sick people around the world.
As we live in this digital world, churches around the world are doing their part to extend their reach to its millions of believers. Sunday prayer masses here in Dubai are regularly streamed on Facebook. On the other hand, Philippine’s Manila Cathedral has been constantly live-streaming its prayer services in Youtube and being joined by thousands of its followers. Many have expressed gratitude for being able to practice their faith online.
One experience shared with TheNational.ae, “A friend of mine who is a member of a different Protestant church uses Zoom to meet her small group to pray and do Bible studies. My prayer group meets via Discord, another platform. Others are utilizing Skype, Viber, and Telegram.”
While we are mandated to work from home, let us be obligated to practice faith at home as well, no matter which religion or congregation we belong to.
Stay safe, stay healthy, stay faithful to the Lord. This too shall pass.
