Do not fear

By Rhoda Klein Miller 

To school teachers and administrators and parents of students who must lead and make tough decisions in uncertain and fearful times. In the days ahead you will do your best to plan despite missing or conflicting information and you will likely doubt your choices. It would be nice to have bold assurance from a leader that everything will be fine if we adhere to simple rules but I’d be wary of those too confident they can control or contain this threat.

COVID19 is a “novel” virus and the learning curve to understand and combat it is as steep as the daily case reports.  As in-person learning resumes, community spread of this contagion will increase.  But consider this, your daily commute is a risk-laden activity you’ve been managing for years. Road collisions remain the leading cause of injury and death among Canadian children (ages 1–19).  Currently in BC, fatalities due to cycling, pedestrian or vehicle accidents are on par with those who died from COVID. 

No one wants to bear responsibility for another’s injury or loss of life however even with protective measures, whether speed limits, seatbelts, helmets or masks, we practice risk reduction, not elimination.  While we should not be ignorant to dangers, we cannot be paralyzed by them.

As Christians we proceed trusting in God. I am inspired by the friends of Daniel who when facing the threat of a fiery furnace spoke their conviction to the King of Babylon: “God is more than able to deliver us…but if He doesn’t, He is still our God and we will serve and worship Him only” (Dan.3:16-18). The message God has for us is repeated over one hundred times in the Holy Scriptures, “Do not fear!” I wish there was more I could do to support your difficult decisions but do know our church will be praying for you.

Remember the counsel Paul shared with Timothy: God has not given us a spirit of fear but instead He provides us with power, love, and sound judgement (2 Tim.1:7).

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