If My People Will Pray...

Extensive thought has been given to what I am about to write.  I have been challenged by a particular Scripture.  After much study, I have more questions than I do answers.  But I decided to post my dilemma in the hopes that one or more of you may have some revelation.   "...In a multitude of counselors there is safety." (Proverbs 24:6 - KJ)
 
How often have you read or heard 2 Chronicles 7:14?  "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."  Frequently, I am sure.  Yet have you looked at the context of this verse?  Solomon had just successfully finished building the Lord's temple.  He asked that the Lord come to His resting place at the temple.  The Lord appeared to him and said, "I have heard your prayer and chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.  When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people..." (2 Chronicles 7:12-13 - NIV) The King James version says, "If I shut up heaven," and NLT says, "At times I might shut up heaven." 
 
Knowing what is going on in our world today (droughts, locusts and plagues) I began to wonder if these things were sent by the Lord.  The crucifixion of Jesus on the Cross was a gift from God to cover our sins.  I know God as compassionate, loving, merciful and altogether wonderful.  Would He send such a destruction and death to the earth?  I also know Him as completely pure and holy, worthy of worship.  He is a jealous God, wanting our affections and honor.  How do we reconcile these characteristics?
 
We are battling a pandemic in the world called Coronavirus or COVID-19.  It is overwhelming the medical community, affecting the economy and changing our lives.  Though medical scientists are rushing to find a vaccine to stop the virus it maybe too little too late.  I read about a church in France where 15 people came to know the Lord because of their fear of death.  Could this virus come from Him in order to bring many to salvation?  Is this what we need to humble ourselves and call out to God for mercy?
 
In the midst of all the chaos, I wonder:  Does God still send plagues?  Other Old Testament Scriptures sound somewhat like 2 Chronicles 7:13 including 2 Chronicles 6:26-31, Deuteronomy 11:17-18, Ezekiel 14:19-21, Amos 4:7.  Wise King Solomon wrote, "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people." (Proverbs 14:34) The United States is a nation in sin.  Chuck Smith calls it a national sickness caused by forgetfulness, neglect and rejection.  We are guilty of idolatry, sexual immorality, killing the unborn and neglecting the Lord’s Day.  Are we being disciplined by God?  Has He reached the end of His patience with us?  Is He using instruments of judgment talked about in Jeremiah 14:12 (sword, famine and plague) to redirect our course?
 
If we look back in the history of our nation we find that in the summer of 1623 there was a severe drought in Plymouth, MA--so severe that the native Indians had never seen anything like it.  The settlers called for an assembly of all of the people.  They humbled themselves together before the Lord with fasting and prayer according to Edward Winslow's book The Light and the Glory.  For one day they stopped all work and gathered to acknowledge God and repent of their sins.  Before the day was over the rain clouds blew in and it began to rain.  The rains lasted for 14 days.
 
Sometimes we need to look back in history to chart our course for the future.  Past presidents, including George Washington in 1789, John Adams in 1799, and Abraham Lincoln in 1863, called for national days of fasting and prayer to ask for repentance for past transgressions and mercy from God.  Here is my conclusion.  It does not matter where Coronavirus came from.  It does matter how we respond!  The future of our nation is at stake.  Thankfully, our president has seen the need to call our nation to prayer. He said, "It is my great honor to declare Sunday, March 15, as a National Day of Prayer.  We are a Country that, throughout our history, has looked to God for protection and strength in times like these...No matter where you may be, I encourage you to turn towards prayer in an act of faith.  Together, we will easily PREVAIL!"  The Church must lead the way in this call to prayer. Let us get on our knees and call out to God for mercy and revival. May I also suggest that you read Psalm 91 aloud every day.