The city of Detroit has undergone a major transformation that some have called “the big comeback” or a “rebirth”. Just a few years ago, the Motor City filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection, saddled with more than $18 billion in debt. Buildings like the once-grand neoclassical Michigan Central Station—a building that symbolized Detroit’s significance—had been abandoned and littered with graffiti, symbolizing the decline of the city.

In general, humans do not like to talk about death. As a society, we have “sanitized” the process of dying by keeping it largely out of view. But the pandemic brought the topic of death into sharper focus. This raises some important questions: What happens to believers when they die? Will we see our departed fellow believers again one day? 

If the experience of the coronavirus pandemic taught us anything, it taught us patience. So many things were put on hold. Plans for vacation or plans for visiting loved ones were paused. We waited for restrictions to be lifted as we longed for society to return to “normal.” Patience is not something that comes easily to us—and for some of us, being patient is a major challenge.

During the pandemic, we were living in uncertain times, and this fostered anxiety, fear, and despair. Throughout that time, many of our plans for the foreseeable future were put on hold, revised, or cancelled. Plans for vacations or weddings, for instance, were changed in the blink of an eye. Businesses and schools closed, reopened, and closed again. Surgeries were postponed.

The Coronavirus pandemic was a time of suffering and pain for so many. In the eyes of the wider world, we were living through a senseless tragedy of enormous proportions. But for those who know the Lord, we have the confidence that He used this season to refine His church, to teach His people a deeper trust and faith, and ultimately, to bring glory to Himself. Some theologians put it this way: God permits what He hates (pandemic, suffering, etc.) to accomplish what He loves (salvation of souls, sanctification of saints, glory of His Name, etc.) In the midst of trying days, God calls us to allow Him—indeed to cooperate with Him--to accomplish His good plans for us. The call for us is to patiently submit to His sovereign will as we run our race of faith.