He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Shortly before dawn he went out to them, walking on the lake.
Mark 6:48 (NIV)
“Mommy,” she called out. “It’s dark in my room. I’m scared.”
I’m convinced that nightlights were designed for parents with small children. But, if you come to our apartment, we have them all over. Now, we use them for safety so we don’t trip in the dark.
COVID-19 has plunged us into the dark. We’re scared and confined to our homes, stumbling around in the shadows of this disease. Each day is much like the one before…I have to think about what day of the week it is. I thought we were in for a fifteen day stretch of social distancing but now that has been extended to the end of April. I decided I could do anything for two weeks but I must confess, I wasted most of that time. I spent too much time listening to the news, coloring, and reading on the Internet. I enjoyed wearing my comfy clothes but saw no reason to put on any make-up or do my hair…it was a break. I hated the isolation, the cancelling of my life. The future is so uncertain. What is our everyday life going to look like after this virus is contained? Will we ever get “back to normal?”
I’m sad for my granddaughter, Tori, who is a senior in high school, planning to graduate in May. This should be a time of celebration and fun events but instead, she is home with her family, doing her classwork online. Family and friends have had to cancel long-planned trips but that is really nothing but inconvenience compared to those who have this disease. I had never thought about the number of ventilators in the US but we know it now. The market is up, the market is down. For a nation that likes stability, we are in rough waters. We are rowing against strong winds and worry that this invisible enemy will overwhelm us.
But even as the winds threatened to upend the boat that the disciples were fighting against, remember it’s darkest before the dawn. Jesus knew the rough conditions the disciples had encountered. He knew their danger and the peril that threatened to take them down. And just before dawn He walked out to help them. On the water. And stopped the wind and waves.
We are not alone in this darkness of disease, social distancing, and quarantine. The God who created this world is working in the background. His timing is not our timing so we must wait and use this time to learn how to endure well. We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. Romans 5:3.
Unlike the first two weeks, I have decided to make good use of this next month. I’m going to dress and put on make-up, do my hair, and call someone to check in with them each day. We’re initiating an online Bible Study using Zoom, something new for all of us. I want this emerging endurance to develop into hope. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. Romans 5:4.
We continue to hear that this will eventually end and it will. The darkness will be overcome by the light The light shines in the darkness,and the darkness can never extinguish it. John 1:5 My prayer is that we will have learned some new things, realized what is really important, no longer take for granted each day, and give thanks for all of God’s blessings.
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.