Whenever Ebola comes up in conversation I typically sit quietly and nod my head while people verbally express their fear. I may look like I am paying attention to their conversation but my mind is going back to April 2014 when we had an Ebola scare in Ghana...
As many of you know Julia and I spent the last two years working at a Baptist Hospital in Northern Ghana which is located in West Africa. Our hospital was staffed by Ghanaian doctors and nurses, full-time doctors from the IMB and Samaritans Purse and volunteer doctors, residents, and medical students. In April, a possible case of Ebola was discovered in Kumasi, Ghana which is located six hours south of where we lived. Medical schools in America received word of a possible Ebola case and contacted all of the volunteers serving at the hospital and told them they had to leave Ghana. Six medical students stricken with fear woke up the volunteer coordinator and his family in the wee hours of the morning and insisted on being driven three hours over bad roads to the airport. A team of fifteen volunteers from the University of West Virginia who were waiting in the capital city of Accra canceled their trip up North because of the Ebola fear and all volunteers left because it was "too dangerous". When the volunteers left, they left behind four families including ours to pick up the slack. Julia, Piper, and I woke up the next morning to a mass exodus of volunteers leaving the hospital because it was "too dangerous" for them to serve at the hospital. I remember looking at my wife and four month old baby daughter and realizing that we had to stay. We couldn't pack up and leave because it was "too dangerous". We had to stay. Never in my life had I felt so alone and afraid, but at the same time comforted by God. I went to the hospital and prayed over the wards with the patients and while I was nervous I knew that God would be with us. I remember leaving the hospital for the day, holding Piper in my arms and talking with Julia about our plan if the Ebola patient's test came back positive. We walked through several scenarios but in the end we decided that we would/could not leave. Whatever happened we would stay the course. Thankfully, a few days later the test came pack negative and there was no Ebola in Ghana. We rejoiced with the other families who lived on the compound and thanked God for his provision and sustaining grace.
Ebola is scary. Most diseases which the average person knows little to nothing about are scary. As Christians though, we need not fear Ebola and should be the voice of calm and reason in the midst of a stressful situation. As Christians there are four responses we should do before we begin to fear Ebola....
1) Education: We need to educate ourselves about the disease. We need to understand that most of the cases of Ebola are transmitted from person to person through contact with secretions of an infected person. Some transmissions have occurred by accident in medical staff with staff working with patients infected with the disease. Ebola is not an air-borne disease so we do NOT need to panic. Here is a great blog to help educate yourself (What Christians Should Know About the Ebola Crisis:)
2) Pray: Please be in prayer for West Africa. Please be in prayer for those infected both at home and abroad. Please be in prayer for medical workers and missionaries who put their lives on the line everyday to help serve others. Pray God uses this crisis to spread a supremacy for His name among all peoples.
3) Remember: Please remember those serving on the front lines. Julia and I may be home in America but we left friends and co-workers behind who are giving their lives to minister to the least of these and show/share the love of Christ. Please remember our missionaries serving in West Africa.
4) Minister: Encourage those you know who are serving in the medical field. Pray for the countries affected by this disease. Do NOT add to Ebola hysteria. Guard your tongue when speaking about the disease. Please attempt to be a voice of reason and calm in the midst of a stressful situation.
Ebola is a scary disease. Most things unknown are. I fear; however, that as Christians we are becoming known for what we fear rather than being known for showing love and serving the least of these. Christians should not be running around scared but should remain calm in the midst of a stressful situation. While this outbreak may have been a surprise for the world, it was not a surprise for our God. His unstoppable will continues under His inscrutable wisdom. Not one inch of the universe escapes the control of our Lord. For those of us who believe in a sovereign God, we know we're called to remain calm in the midst of the storm. We find confidence not primarily in the belief that science will control this outbreak or that we will not be affected. Rather, we hope in the Lord.
In conclusion, let believers be the voice of peace amid the confusion. While much of this disease is still unknown, it is equally true that panic will not help us. The unbelieving world needs to see our trust in God amid this difficulty. We must educate ourselves, pray for Nations and individuals afflicted with the disease, remember our missionaries in West Africa, and minister to others.
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