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Mar 20

President’s Message and Prayer

by ron c. smith, d.min., ph.d.

In times of anxiety and fear, many people turn to God and seek divine help. This is true even in people who had no prior interest in anything spiritual or religious. Anxiety and fear also can drive people away from God, at a time when they need Him most. Fraught with worry and distracted by pressures generated by COVID-19, accompanied by corresponding challenges of limited food, illness, waning investments, and isolation; even religious people find there is little time for prayer, decreased desire or ability to concentrate on Bible reading, and bitterness about Heaven’s seeming silence in the face of crisis.

Due to the rapidly changing situation with the coronavirus disease pandemic, the administration of the Southern Union Conference has elected to transition its office headquarters in Peachtree Corners, Georgia, to a virtual operation. Starting at the end of business on March 16, 2020, all employees will be required to work from home and all efforts have been made to ensure that day-to-day operations will continue without interruption. The Southern Union administration will evaluate the current situation on April 22, 2020, to decide if virtual operations need to be extended.

In our quest to be a part of the solution and not the problem, I encourage you to follow the guidance of the CDC and other federal agencies, as well as your state and local governments. This includes reducing travel, washing your hands frequently and thoroughly, and limiting social gatherings as far as possible. Additionally, take time to know and love your family like never before. Pray to God and trust in His divine power. Love has been called the greatest therapeutic force of all time, but nowhere is this truer than in the reduction of fear and anxiety. The Bible states, “Perfect love expels all fear.”

I invite you to pray with me now. Our Heavenly Father, we come to You in full acknowledgment of Your omnipotence and the awesomeness of Your sovereignty. Lord, we find ourselves in the middle of a crisis in our nation, in our Church, in our families, and in our personal lives.

We’ve been impacted by a battery of issues surrounding the Coronavirus. Financial investments have waned and are dwindling, food items are limited, and there’s a whole lot of fear and anxiety in the hearts of people. I pray O God, that we will use this opportunity to draw close to You.

And even as we continue to work remotely as members of Your Church, give us the power as well as Heaven’s resourcefulness to continue to serve in a very safe way that will facilitate the healing of our country, of our jurisdictional surroundings, our Church, and even within our homes. We give You our lives afresh now, and we are totally dependent upon what You will do for us. We ask it in the name of Jesus, with full confidence that You will see us through. Amen. –RCS


RON C. SMITH, D.MIN., PH.D. President of the Southern Union Conference.

Southern Union | March Special Issue 2020

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