Last week another 5.2 million workers filed for their first week of unemployment benefits, bringing the total number of Americans who have filed initial jobless claims to around 22 million. But that economic strain may soon get even worse as COVID-19 takes its toll on small businesses.

A recent survey found that 43 percent of small businesses say they will have to permanently close within six months if they don’t receive immediate financial aid or if they economic conditions do not improve quickly. Almost one in four owners of small businesses say they have already shut down on a temporary basis, and 40 percent of those that are still open say they will probably have to close temporarily close within the next couple of weeks.

“The effect goes far beyond bank accounts by threatening the very existence of certain businesses,” Dave Harvey says. “And that’s just the financial picture; the personal one is equally tender. When roles, relationships, income, and daily rhythms are rearranged, it chews away at a person’s self-worth.”

Harvey’s recent article helps us “discover how God uses suffering—even a global pandemic—to invite us into a journey of questions, vulnerability, and ultimate purpose.”