What should I do while I am stuck at home?

What To Do If You’re Tired of Living Like This

/ hhooks / 5 Comments

I’m tired of living this way.

Tired of being afraid. Tired of being sad, angry, worried…

Because 2020 hasn’t been our year, has it?

Among other things, we continue to suffer under a global pandemic. People are afraid. Isolated. Angry. Sick and dying.

There is hatred, fear, and ignorance. Social injustice is prevalent. George Floyd was murdered by a police officer in front of witnesses who used their phones to record the crime. And the officer wasn’t arrested right away. There were protests. Riots. More people died.

And this is really just the short list of things the US has dealt with collectively since January. The sum total of our year so far means there are too many people dealing with too much pain.

And I’m tired of it. It’s time to do something.

So, I pray, and I ask God, “Father, what do I do? How do I live for you when I’m afraid? How do I live for you with so many terrible things happening?”

And I turn to my Bible.

Ephesians 5:1-2 says, “Therefore, be imitators of God as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

Well, that sounds nice. Let’s all sit around the fire and hug (no, wait, we can’t hug – gotta maintain a social distance of at least 6 feet) and sing Kumbaya.

(Honestly, I feel bad that this song is the punchline for so many jokes…really I do, but you get me, right)?

Seriously though Christians, we have to confront this pain and suffering.

What can we do? The key is in verse 2: Walk in love.

Image Credit – Gracious Quotes.com

If more people would walk in love and give ourselves up for others as Christ did, maybe we could change the way we live. If everyone is looking out for someone else, the focus is off self and onto another person.

Can you imagine?!

We can take it a step further and give ourselves up for people whether they deserve it or not! That is revolutionary! That is when God has definitely changed our hearts.

Self-sacrificial love is always a challenge but is especially hard to show for people who are unlovable or whom we decide do not deserve our love. When I love someone who is unlovable, who doesn’t deserve my affection and good will, God is at work. He is changing my heart and can use this to change the heart of the unlovable person, too.

Uh oh. I hear Kumbaya again. Do you?

Yes, I know I can be naive. I’m describing something impossible here, a utopia.

Realistically, what I propose won’t happen. It can’t, at least not completely because we’re humans. We screw up. Not everyone plays along.

But, it would have to make some difference, wouldn’t it? Even if just a small amount of people do it? A remnant?

Every little bit helps.

Practically, how do we do this? How do we walk in love?

In the verse (Eph 5:2), Paul used the Greek word “agape” for love. It is a noun that means affection, good will, benevolence, and brotherly love.

Showing good will (having a friendly disposition) might look like this:

Smiling or having a pleasant look on your face

Being kind to the cashier at the store or wait staff at the restaurant

Correcting your children or other people with gentleness

Avoiding arguments or attacking someone’s opinion on social media

Self-sacrificial love (giving yourself up for others) might look like this:

Overlooking offenses

Looking for the best in the situation or the person

Letting go of our own agenda to do something for someone else

***Remember, even the tiniest light starts to drive out the darkness.

How can YOU walk in love today? Just today.

We’ll worry about tomorrow when it gets here.

How to Survive the New Normal

/ hhooks / 1 Comment

The New Normal.  That’s what we’re calling what’s happening right now.

It started March 11, the last day of school in our district.  It became “real” March 31, the first day the stay-at-home order was in effect in our state.

Everyone talks about the new normal.  We know what it means: the way we’re living during the pandemic with churches, schools, libraries, restaurants, and parks closed.  With people wearing masks and plastic gloves to the grocery store.  With people having virtual visits with their doctors.  With people working from home and having staff meetings on Zoom.

What’s your new normal look like?

For me, it’s been about finding balance.  I can’t lean too far to the left or to the right or the boat will flip over.  I gotta keep it in the center.

At our house, our attempts at finding balance during the new normal have looked like this:

1. We try to keep our lives and our schedule as close to what they used to be as possible.

2.  We try to embrace the changes we’ve experienced – things being added to and taken from our lives.

You could try to keep your life and schedule as close to the same by…

  • waking up in the morning around the same time you used to; going to bed at night around the same time.
  • washing your face every morning and every afternoon; taking a shower every day.
  • eating like you normally eat; don’t go crazy with a lot of junk food and sweets.
  • having meals at normal times.
  • emphasizing more time playing outside, building with LEGO (my kids love LEGO), drawing, reading, or writing, and less time on screens or social media.

You could embrace new things and changes by…

  • taking a walk, riding bikes, playing a board or card game, or watching movies together everyday (hey, we have a lot more free time now, right?)
  • eating a picnic lunch outside.
  • wearing pajamas all day.
  • tackling that home improvement project you’ve been putting off.

Like many people, I’ve chosen to keep some parts of my old, daily routine the same in the new normal even though I don’t have to do so.  I change out of my pajamas and wash my face in the morning and at night.  Continuing to do these things makes me feel better.

I have a friend who puts on her make-up every day although she isn’t leaving the house for work anymore.

Some people still drive to Starbucks for their morning coffee even though they no longer have a commute to work.

A few friends still wake up at their regular time for Bible study or their morning job even though they could do it later in the day since they’re currently at home with their children.

Honestly, the new normal isn’t like the life we were used to.  Lots of plans have changed.  We can’t do a lot of things we used to be able to do.  But I think we can figure our how to keep our wits about us and push through until this thing is over.  And I have faith that it will be over.

 

John16_33OvercomeTheWorld

Image Credit: PhDmind Blog