United Kingdom (MNN) — RNA viruses can mutate quickly, and the COVID-19 strain is no different. A new mutation, allowing for the virus to transmit more easily between humans, first appeared in the United Kingdom. Now it has spread to several other countries, including the United States.
In response to the strain and rising cases, the UK has declared a third national lockdown, including a stay-at-home order and the closure of schools.
This transmission electron microscope image shows SARS-CoV-2—also known as 2019-nCoV, the virus that causes COVID-19. Credit: NIAID-RML
David Durance of TeachBeyond talks about the effects of lockdown on the ministry. “It’s interesting that we’re doing online calls with our local team here as much as we are with our teams around the world.”
This, in addition to travel restrictions, has created a lot of chaos for TeachBeyond. But Durance says the digital technology portion of the ministry has excelled. “It’s also doing things that we would never have been able to do, like global calls with all of our members. God’s provided opportunities for us to do things that we would never have seen before. But it’s not been without challenges.”
In-person work has been limited for nearly a year now, Durance says. The UK started bracing for COVID-19 in February of last year. Durance hopes the ministry can get back to a more normal travel schedule by April. Thankfully, most scientists believe the UK strain will not be any more resistant to vaccines than the old strain.
How to pray
The pandemic has worn everyone down, says Durance, including TeachBeyond workers globally. He asks people to be, “Praying actively for missionaries of TeachBeyond and around the world with other missions, that they continue to have that stamina, the courage to stand up and take that step every day to do and be the Gospel proclaimers.”
Pray that all followers of Christ would have this strength and love that only comes from the Holy Spirit.
The header photo shows deserted streets near London, England. (Photo by Decky, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)
