Limited Capacity

I must admit I thought this would be over by now. Call me optimistic (or call me naïve); but I somehow mitigated my emotions by letting myself believe that by summer’s end this would all blow over. Like the flu season comes to an end, I surmised that, surely, Corona virus season would be over shortly, and life could get back to normal. 

That was back in May. Now we are on the cusp of Fall and schools are making multiple game plans for varying scenarios, depending on how the virus spikes or flattens. 

There is limited capacity at every turn. 

Schools are operating at limited capacity just like our churches have been for months now. Classroom capacity is capped, if classrooms will even be opened. My church is back to meeting in person but at a very limited capacity. We have to rsvp so the sanctuary doesn’t get too full, and we have to wear masks as we file into rows of seats blocked off from every other row, sitting three seats from the next family group. 

Stores also have limited capacity. There is literally a limit on how many people can be inside at once for some stores. Arrows point which way to walk so you limit your contact with other shoppers. And some aisles still post limits on sacred supplies like paper goods, cleaning goods and sometimes even baking goods.

It feels like our emotional and relational capacities are limited as well. We might be quicker to take offense at someone who has a different opinion on anything from masks and distancing to political or racial views. It is easy to be short with the people we have been confined with in our limited relationships for months now.

We have come back together more than we were in the Spring, but it is at a very limited capacity. This could be depressing to my optimistic (or naïve) spirit; but let my naïve optimism take you to a different realm… 

Limited capacity in the natural does not in any way effect the capacity of the spiritual realm!

In the spiritual realm we are no more limited than we were in January! God has not been limited by an earthly virus. He is not concerned or confused or slowed down.

He -is -not -limited. 

Moses found his own natural capacity limited when he was trying to satisfy the needs and desires of God’s people who were crying for meat in the wilderness. God said that He would supply a month’s worth of meat for the entire community, but Moses questioned how God could supply such a vast bounty in the middle of the desert.

“Even if we butchered all our flocks and herds, would that satisfy them? Even if we caught all the fish in the seas, would that be enough?” Moses asked. (Num 11:22 NLT)

God replied to Moses:

“Is the Lord’s hand shortened?”

Did he think that God’s hand could be shortened by the natural limited capacity of the desert? Laughable! Limited capacity in the natural does not affect the unlimited capacity of God. His capacity is unlimited and unchanging.

Job quipped: “Can you find out the limit of the Almighty? It is higher that heaven- what can you do? Deeper than Sheol- what can you know? Its measure is longer than the earth and broader than the sea.” (Job 11:7-9)

We may be coming back together in a limited capacity in the natural this Fall. And who knows how long it will last. But we are no more limited in the spiritual than we have ever been.

We have full capacity.

In fact, it is quite reasonable to think that the natural disturbances in our world are actually increasing our spirits toward full spiritual capacity.  Our limitations here in the natural drive us to turn to another dimension that we instinctively know is not limited.

The Psalmist put it well when he said:

He brought me out to a spacious place; He rescued me, because He delighted in me.           Psalm 18:19

Lord, bring us out into a spacious place that is not limited in spiritual capacity as we trust in You.  We have full capacity in You. Take us further into your unlimited Kingdom.