The Flu

This H1N1 influenza, known commonly as the swine flu, has a lot of people worried, even scared. The Centers for Disease Control (US) has put out a lot of information on it, and the World Health Organization has mobilized to fight it. So what do we do? Wear a mask, stay home, shoot traveling salespeople who might be spreading it? (Obviously, at least one of these is an extreme, for the sake of humor.)

One of my colleagues suggested several points that we really can use, and I'm starting from his ideas here.

1. Strike a balance: don't panic, but don't ignore it either. Take prudent steps and then leave it in God's hands. Right now, there's no need to stay at home if you are well; but it would be prudent, when you go out, to avoid people who are coughing and sneezing -- the primary way this flu (like others) is spread. And if you or your child is sick, stay home.

2. Obey your mother's advice: cover your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing (with a hanky if you can) and then wash your hands. These two points are the main emphasis on the CDC's website. Wash your hands frequently, (I can hear my mom now, "You call those clean? Go back and start over!"). Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are also useful. Don't touch your mouth, nose or eyes -- that's how the virus gets into you.

3. Be a calming presence around others. We know of our Father's love and care for us, so we can be confident even when things don't look as good outwardly as we'd like. That calm will be a blessing to those who are fearful.

4. Ask God what you can do to help others, even if they fall ill. Christians love others as Christ loved us, following the command of Jesus in John 13:34. It's said that during the bubonic plague that hit the Roman Empire during the 2nd Century AD, Christians stayed behind to nurse the sick whose own family had abandoned them. Many of those who were struck with the illness became Christians due to the example of their care-givers. We today can love the sick in practical ways, even without exposing ourselves to the illness, and it transmits the love of Christ to them.

Now there's a thought: people can get sick from a germ being transmitted to them. They can get Jesus in their lives from his love being transmitted to them. Which do you think will last longer and have a better effect? Let's give the gift that keeps on giving!

p.s. If you use the internet, you can go to www.cdc.gov/H1n1 for more information. As of today, they'll tell you the same things: cover your mouth and nose when you sneeze, wash your hands often, don't touch your mouth, nose and eyes, and stay home if you're sick.