24 How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. 25 There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number—living things both large and small. 26 There the ships go to and fro, and Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.
27 All creatures look to you to give them their food at the proper time. 28 When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things. 29 When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust. 30 When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground.
31 May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works— 32 he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. 34 May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the Lord. 35b Praise the Lord, my soul. Praise the Lord. (Psalm 104:24-34, 35b)
As of today, except for some South American and South Asian countries, the global pandemic has basically come under control. Political leaders have made optimistic economic forecasts for the future. We found that people returned on the street; the retail industry gradually resumed to work; customers began to consume again. Students in Hong Kong and China returned to school to resume classes. After a few weeks of "exile" at home, people were very excited about “returning to normal”. The poet proclaimed that Jehovah is the source of our joy in the midst of exile. God is the reason of worship and the meaning of life. God has great power. He shakes the earth and erupts volcanoes. The impact of the global pandemic is similar to earthquake and volcano eruption of the ancient time. Albeit the people are panic-stricken, can the followers of Christ still declare that God will be glorified forever in such impact like the poet?! Is the world's real response just returning to normal?! What is normal and the intention of God's creation?! I have no intention to ignore the irreversible trauma caused by the pandemic - more than 300,000 people have died worldwide, many enterprises have closed down, and tens of millions of people have lost their jobs. The wisdom that was expressed in Psalm 104 is that God gives and takes away according to His will. The pandemic not only cleansed the earth but also cleansed our souls. God renewed the earth and breathed everything into being. The poet's spiritual reflection was particularly valuable. After the impact, everything is reduced to dust. The power of resurrection is never just the hope of eternal life, but also the opportunity to renew creation on earth as it is in heaven.