The Spring of 1970

I continue to be struck by the parallels between the spring of 1970 and what the country, indeed the world, is going through today. Times that try our souls.

In the spring of 1970, a frenzy pf protests broke out when President Nixon announced the war would extend to Cambodia, which had been supplying the North Vietnamese. For several days, incensed young people in Ohio fought the police and inflicted property damage. On Monday, May 4th, a gathering of students at Kent State University threw stones at National Guardsmen, who then fired into the crowd. Four students died. Eleven were wounded. Of those who died, two were trying to get to their classes.

Today we are again at war, this time against a powerful virus we don’t fully understand. Our people are practicing social distancing and staying at home to stop the spread of Covid-19. Schools are closed. Business shuttered. Hospitals full. People afraid.

Anti-war protests weren’t the only things happening in the spring of 1970. At Asbury College a powerful revival broke out that eventually spread to other schools across the nation, reaching even to five continents. Its effects are still being felt. Today I assure you, God continues to be at work. Revival has come to Brazil and Tennessee this year, and He continues to move among the creation He loves and will one day fully restore and renew. He is our strong tower. We can run to Him, and be safe.