Looking Backward and Moving Forward

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.    
Hebrews 12:1

Since we are indeed surrounded by a cloud of both friends and their exhalations, starting on August 1, Trinity Church will require that all arrive and remain masked for the entirety of the worship services.

A few weeks ago, we did a congregational survey to determine where we are at Trinity in relation to the ongoing COIVID-19 pandemic. At the time, things looked pretty good, but much has changed since then. It feels like moving backwards, but in truth it is learning from the past to deal with what is unfolding now and whatever lies ahead.

COVID cases are increasing in Baltimore County; worse are cases of infection among people who are vaccinated; and worst are new data that vaccinated people may sometimes still carry and spread the virus. The Delta variant is the main culprit but won’t be the last mutation to find its way into our communities. That’s the nature of viruses. Maybe you recall that forty years later there is still no cure for the AIDS virus. Viruses are living things, and like all living things they are programmed to survive.

Therefore, we must persevere in loving our neighbors and resisting the power of sin by wearing the darn mask for a single hour. Do you hear the Tempter’s voice whisper, “But none of this applies to us, though, right?” or “But the ceiling is so tall!” or “But there are only a few children here.” This is the murmuring of an insidious sort of sin that takes advantage of weariness, frustration, and plain selfishness. It is the voice of the world telling us our rights matter more than our responsibilities.

The Letter to the Hebrews continues: Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it (12:11). Perhaps we should look to masks not as an inconvenience but as teachers of love, reminding us that our difficulties pale in comparison to the suffering of Christ, and that with loving discipline we will grow closer to God.

in peace,