A pandemic is defined as “an epidemic occurring worldwide, or over a very wide area, crossing international boundaries and usually affecting a large number of people. Remember an epidemic is a disease. A disease is defined as a disorder of structure or function in a human, animal, or plant, especially one that produces specific symptoms or that affects a specific location and is not simply a direct result of physical injury.

Let’s make the definition of disease easy for you to understand. A disease is a disorder of structure. It is a disorder of a function that produces a specific symptom. I will like to give my definition of a disease and to do so, I want to split the word disease into two words, a prefix and a suffix that is ‘dis and ease.’ The dis and ease were added to form a derivative and the derivative is dis-ease. Dis- is a negative prefix. It means not or none. When we add dis- to the beginning of a word, we give it the opposite meaning. Ease is defined as the absence of difficulty or effort. Ease makes something that should be unpleasant or intense, less serious or severe. Ease is the state of being comfortable. My definition of disease is anything that does not make you feel at ease is a disease.

You have certain situations that make you feel unease. Your challenges are a disease. When you have multiple problems, challenges, disappointments, failures, disasters, then your life is like a pandemic. Fear in the face of your pandemic will defeat you. You fear what you do not understand. You judge as evil what you fear. You attempt to control what you judge as evil. You attack what you cannot control.

When there is a pandemic, the airwaves are concentrated with fear.  Fear is the complete opposite of faith. Fear is an overwhelmingly disturbing force of the human mind. Fear can reduce you to nothing. It can sink you from grace to grass. Fear has the power to sway, distort and rupture the conventions of your psyche. The mind, body and spirit succumb to its brutal atrocities as you can find yourself piecing together a troubling riddle of digressing emotion. Despite all the negativity you feel about fear, it can unite the scattered to become an entity of impenetrable fortitude while enabling you to understand your personality.

The troubles you are facing today is developing the strength you need tomorrow. You must never give up. Things will change for the better. The fact that you have troubles, problems, situations, and challenges from every angle is not the end of the world. Every pandemic has a solution. Sometimes you need time to investigate and gather the right data that will inform you of the solution.

Life is filled with uncertainty, especially when you are going through challenges. While many things remain outside your control, your mindset is key to coping with difficult circumstances and facing the unknown. You overcome the world by the renewing of your mind. The battleground is in the mind. If you think you will overcome the challenge then I can assure you that nothing will stop you because you think you will overcome. As you think in your mind so you are. If you think there is a way, the Lord will make the way a reality. If you win in your mind, you are a winner. If you are defeated in your mind, then you cannot win. What you see is what you get. What you look for in the storm is determined by the nature of your thought. You should walk by faith, not by sight.

Your pandemic is part of the uncertainty in life. You will encounter pandemics at varying times in your life. It has nothing to do with sin or unrighteousness. It is what it is. As long as the earth remains, you will face unavoidable challenges in your life. You will walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Uncertainty is a natural and unavoidable part of life. You cannot control everything that happens to you. You can control how you react or respond to it. When you can't control everything, you need to relax and have faith that things will work out in your favour. You must stop overthinking.

There is currently no specific treatment for coronavirus. Antibiotics do not help, as they do not work against viruses. Treatment aims to relieve the symptoms while your body fights the illness. You'll need to stay in isolation away from other people until you've recovered. Scientists all over the world are collaborating and working round the clock, going through the protocol to produce a vaccine that can be trusted. There have been many rumours and controversies concerning coronavirus and the expected vaccine. While they are yet to manufacture a reliable vaccine, a change of approach in our lifestyle was introduced to reduce the spread until they can develop a vaccine that reduces the risk of infection.

When faced with obstacles, you need to reclaim your power. Be willing to analyse the situation and be honest to yourself. Be willing to leave behind pursuits that do not deliver results. When all attempts have been exhausted, you need to redirect your attention. Pride, self-worth and time invested are the main reasons for flogging a dead horse. Learn to lean into the challenge so you move through the obstacle rather than allow it to dominate your life. An obstacle is often a stepping stone. They do not block the path because they are the path.

To survive you know the precautions and measures put in place. This pattern of dealing with the Coronavirus should not be different from how you deal with your crisis in life. It is not every time you will get a solution immediately. If you don’t, it is not the end of the world. You need a protocol of activities that will enable you to survive and stay safe until you find the solution.

The journey of your life has never been easy. Before you got here you have gone through so many challenges. There are situations you were on top. There were others you were beneath, but in all, you are here today because you refused to cave in, break down, let go, give up, remain down, or kill yourself when things appear to be impossible. The obstacles you are experiencing are not to diminish you, they are there to make you stronger so you can reclaim your power.

Amid all your troubles, don't look down in defeat. Stand up straight and realise who you are and rise above your pandemic. You are more than a pandemic. You are more than enough. You are worth more than second thoughts and maybes. You are more incredible than you know, and you deserve more than you think. I love you.