This evening it was announced that the Fort Worth Independent School District is shutting down on the heals of the first verified case of swine flu among the student population. I have to admit, it took a few minutes to process that information without panic. My first thought was to fear for the safety of my grandchildren who live only one school district away from the perceived threat of pandemic outbreak. 

My first thought was fear! That's when I realized that fear is the front man in this global assault. God's Word say's that he has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind. In other words, a fearful mind is not a sound mind. If the schools and the daycares close and we all start donning little white masks to prevent germs from spreading; it's okay. We'll get through this. If we have to inconvenience our employers by taking our sick time to stay healthy, it's okay. Praise God that there are those who have those benefits and they can help out those who don't. It's okay.   

Families will be pulling together to shoulder the burden of school and daycare closures and that's a good thing. "All things work together for our good" the Lord tells us in Romans 2: 28. We can take refuge in that promise, even if the world around us panics. As believers we have the authority to deliver ourselves, our families and our communities from this disease--we do not have to accept it and we do not have to grant it access through a fearful (or doubting) mindset. We have been given the mind of Christ (Phil. 2: 5). We have been granted the authority on this planet, through Jesus Christ to redeem the health of our communities and our nation (Matt. 10: 1).  

^"And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover." (Mark 16: 17-18)

It's time to rise up and exercise our authority.