Turn concern over coronavirus into silent prayer

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but power and love ..."

- 2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)

I was shocked when my routine trip for groceries looked more like a Black Friday frenzy. Except for the hot items on sale weren't the latest technology or toys, they were everyday needs such as water, sanitary wipes, and the hottest commodity of all was toilet paper.

I was amazed that toilet paper would ever be in such high demand. It shows how not to take for granted the simple things in life, such as clean water and T.P.

Usually, lines from the checkout to the back of the store occur the day after Thanksgiving. Other than lines at the gas pumps created by the Oil Embargo back in the 1970s, and Black Fridays, I haven't seen anything like this.

Even the swine flu epidemic years ago, which took the life of a family member of mine, was not dealt with nearly as severe as this. And the fact we lose 20,000 people each year to complications of the flu in the U.S., doesn't cause us to hit the panic button. So why so much chaos and pandemonium this time?

As a medical professional, I clearly understand the seriousness of the disease. When my friend sent a text to inquire if I was washing my hands, I replied, "You're talking to a nurse. And my sons have been listening to me get on them for years about their hand-washing habits." Now with the recent growing popularity of hand sanitizer, I feel I have finally been vindicated for all my years of nagging my kids to wash their hands.

Besides gaining awareness of hand-washing precautions, I'm concerned with our attentiveness to how God wants us to handle a crisis.

The Bible claims we haven't been born again with a spirit of fear, but calm. Yet, we haven't quite learned how to be calm in chaotic times. Jesus managed to walk straight through a mob of people trying to kill him. That's an amazing example of calm in a chaotic situation.

I wonder when God tells us to remain calm, could it be because hitting the panic button causes us to become our own worst enemy. Perhaps in our panicked state, we tend to hoard and hurt instead of share and help. By looking out for number one, we can lose sight of others, then often someone gets physically hurt, or their needs go neglected in the process.

I know this is a frightening time. We want to be aware of the potential danger, yet use wisdom and quench any undue fears and panic. It's not wrong to feel afraid. Even the most mature can be challenged to stay calm in the crisis. The difference is they manage to control their fearful urges. Like when we feel the impulse to push the panic button, we can turn the terror to silent prayer and let God know we need his healing and protection over our family, community and nation. We can add special prayers for the healing of those afflicted.

For our economic strain, this crisis has caused, we can pray for wisdom and strategic plans for our businesses and households. And we can seek wise advice or counsel from friends or professionals who can help us keep things in a proper perspective.

When shopping, we can practice patience with the store checkers and other servers who are working extra hard to take care of us. And we can work on our ability to trust God to supply all we need without our need to hoard.

We can check that our family and friends have their needs met. Caring for others has a way of turning around and blessing us.

When we're stuck at home, we can turn our anxious thoughts into prayers to calm our nerves. We can play a game or put a puzzle together, or as my friend exclaims, watch our favorite movie on our streaming network. This gives us something constructive to do, making us more at ease, and shows God we've turned our tension into trust.

With help from above and these things in practice, we can show ourselves to be calm and confident in the midst of the crisis. It's my personal prayer, all your needs are met, and you stay safe, fed and healthy. God Bless.

• Annettee Budzban is an author, speaker, life coach, nurse and Bible teacher. Annettee is available to speak to your church group, business, civic organization or be your personal life coach. She can be contacted at Annetteebudzban@aol.com or (847) 543-8413.