What and how I feel about what’s been going on is all over the place. In general though, I tell my kids that it’s more important to know what you DON’T KNOW than what you do know. I am sure that I don’t know…
- How bad this will be.
- How bad it really is.
- How it could have been prevented.
- How it could have been worse.
- How much is precaution vs. how much is government overreach.
- How to run a city/state/country in times like this.
- How to protect the health of citizens and the health of an economy.
- How much of this is real and how much is manufactured.
- How different this is vs. other things that were going to kill us.
- How much the impact the media has had vs. the reality of the situation.
Here’s what I do know…
- God is bigger than this.
- God is intimately aware of all of this.
- God is more than prepared to love me (and all of us) throughout this.
- God will use me if I let Him.
- I have experienced worse and will again.
- I have seen the worst that life has to offer and am ok.
- My kids have seen the worst that life has to offer and are ok (and not freaked out by this).
- Mind you I came to my office at the church to write this.
- Our country is uniquely and masterfully set up to survive and withstand this.
- My great aunt lost 3 kids in two weeks to the flu in the 1920’s, things have been worse.
- In tough times like these we have a great opportunity to love others and I’m focusing on that.
Here’s where that leaves me…
- I’ve cooked all of the food (figuratively speaking of course).
- I bought, stained, and attached a replacement fence for my yard.
- I fixed my charcoal grill.
- I prepped my pond for the spring/summer.
- I haven’t watched nearly the amount of tv that I thought I would.
- I can spend upwards of 3 to 5 minutes on social media before I get sick of it.
- I do need to go out and about for at least a bit each day (store, office, outside).
- I get creative in parenting and try to set up the house for success.
- I can’t imagine the stress those who have a high need for security are experiencing.
- Grace is something most people could use more, both for them and for others.
- Mr. Rogers said, “Look for the helpers.” Let’s make sure that we’re the helpers.
- With down time comes the opportunity to reach out and love.
- You could spend x minutes each day sending a text/email/letter to someone letting them know how much you love and appreciate them.
- Supporting your local businesses is important and gift cards are a great way to do that.
- Realize that, especially in these times, people believe/act/react far differently than you do…and that’s ok.
- This won’t last forever, but we have the opportunity to love others in a way that they’ll remember forever.