It is not difficult to see the impact that COVID is making on the world. Every single day brings new stories and information that can send anyone into a personal landslide. The world is in a frenzied state where most information is unknown and heartbreak remains the title of all headlines.
In the midst of this, we believe that it is critical to call ourselves back to the dignity and value of the individual made in the image of God. It is critical to see the person behind the mask. When going about our days, when we meet eyes with strangers we need to remember that we are all people. We are all people made in the image of God.
For example, it is written in Genesis 1:26, “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”’
After His likeness, we are all people who have the fire that is growing within our hearts. No matter our social status and country that we live, this is not what determines who is above and who is put in last place. No matter if you are in the United States or in India, we are all valuable, and we cannot allow hate or fear to drive our conversations and actions. The goal should always be to love one another, even at a distance. Made in God’s image goes beyond those barriers. Where you are born does not decide who is more worthy of being treated like a human being.
As a community, we must always support one another. Unless we value one another then there can be no progress in making steps towards change. In our business, our personal lives, and our relationships with others, we have the opportunity to choose: are we going to value people, or profit? Will we choose compassion, or name-calling?
We can see from the example of Jesus Christ that he had compassion for all people. All throughout scripture we observe that Jesus shows how compassionate he is to those that we may ignore ourselves. It is something that we can specifically apply to our own lives, now during this pandemic as well as for the rest of our lives. Behind each mask is a person who is loved and adored by God. Personal decisions aside, our worth it not measured on whether or not we agree on everything. Behind each mask is someone like you and someone like me – people in need of love.
Everyone is attentive. Everyone is watching. We must be the continuation of the good that is to come and the good that we are born with God’s image indelibly stamped within us.
