Are we, at last, in the final days of this great Pandemic? Some sources still run on about fresh outbreaks in scattered places, but the overall picture is good. Cases are declining. Each week hundreds of thousands are receiving their shots. Over. Millions have already had the dread disease while many others think the thing was a hoax. But as the number of those who have had COVID increase and the number of those vaccinated meld we approach something called herd immunity. Soon? Yes.

It is pretty much a forgone conclusion that many businesses will never recover. Many are already gone. Others are just hanging on. And will our great sports events ever get back to normal? Will the 90,000 fans in Memorial Stadium in Norman ever again be able to yell across the fruited plain. How much longer will The Oklahoma City’s Thunder suffer without its fans?

Our churches have been hurt too. Some more than others. How about those “Mega-Churches” that defied the disease and never missed a meeting. I heard some say a time or two that “My God is a god of healing, not a god of sickness.” Didn’t exactly work out. I know my own church is down and damaged. We need our members to make of point of coming back.

In spite of wars, famine, disease, and politics the state of Colorado continues to hang onto its tag of “The Murder State.” The latest? A Syrian named Ahmad Al Allawi Alissa, 21. shot down 9 shoppers and one police officer with his AR-15 automatic weapon he had just purchased “legally” there in Aurora. This blends in with the December 1999 killings when two teenaged boys killed 12 of their classmates, a teacher and wounded 24 others before taking their own lives. Yes, at Columbine. Then on July 20, James Holmes murdered 12 and injured 60 more at the movie in Aurora, The movie? “The Dark Knight Rises.” A Batman movie. Of course, the Jon Benet Ramsey case is still pending. The 6-year-old girl was shot dead in 1996. Never solved of course. Boulder police still looking, I guess. All the killings are in the Denver Metro. Not the only place to sport mass killings, but notable nonetheless. At least the “Big Dance” in Indianapolis is taking place. Basketball fans were treated to a lot of good basketball, which goes on at this writing. Our own University of Oklahoma team got zapped by the number one Gonzaga and failed to make it to the “Sweet Sixteen.” Other Big 12 teams plod on and I wish them all well. But one local favorite which barely slipped into the big tournament, Oral Roberts (a 15 seed) did really well. Advancing to the third level they were barely beaten by a sharp looking Arkansas team by only 2 points. In fact, I thought they would win it. But they did not.

What is more notable is the storm the Oral Roberts basketball team kicked up across the nation. A powerful political mogul known by its initial’s LGBTQ was and are in full attack on Oral Roberts. They insist the Tulsa University be cast out of the NCAA. In fact, they demand that ORU, Evangelicals, Mormons, Muslims, and others of that ilk be cast out too. It is sort of odd to me that this loud political group was only a few years ago whining that “we just want to be accepted— allowed to marry—we would never hurt you.” Now to go making all their demands in an or else statement is absolutely stupid and ridiculous. A sick organization indeed. I hope all of you will make an extra effort to be in your church this Easter Sunday, April 4 ^th . It is a good time to get yourself and your family back in church. You need it. And your church needs you.

Wayne Bullard, DPh