“However, we possess this precious treasure, the divine light of the Gospel, in frail, human vessels of earth, that the grandeur and exceeding greatness of power may be from God… We are hedged in and pressed on every side, troubled and oppressed, but not crushed, we suffer embarrassments and we are perplexed and unable to find a way out, but not driven to despair. We are pursued but not deserted to stand alone; we are struck down to the ground, but never…destroyed” 2 Cor 4:7-9 AMP

With COVID being such a BIG part of our daily lives, these words have taken on a new meaning. We are painfully aware of the frailty and vulnerability of our bodies. If you’re sheltering, being hedged in is not a metaphor, it’s a reality. Social distancing can lead to almost total isolation for those who are sheltering alone.

COVID is pressing in on EVERY side, oppressing the whole world. We are struggling to find a way out. We are working to understand how to contain its spread and heal those who have been infected. It can all seem so devastating. However, we have a promise from God, Himself. He promises that that we will not be crushed, or driven to despair. We will NOT be deserted or forced to face this crisis alone! We will NOT be destroyed!

But what if we’re not experiencing these promises? How do we get to a place where we can live this victory?

“For we walk by faith, not by sight, living our lives in a manner consistent with our confident belief in God’s promises.” 2 Cor 5:7 AMP

Walking by faith is something we all aspire to do. But let’s face it, it’s one of the hardest things for us to accomplish. Part of the reason it’s so hard, is that walking by faith means that we aren’t in control. Few of us are overly comfortable with being out of control. I know I am not!

I recently experienced a visual disturbance in my brain that caused me to see double. For over two weeks, walking anywhere was a major trial. The only way I managed it, was to walk eyes closed. This worked well enough in our house. I have lived here for almost 20 years. My body has the muscle memory of every inch of our home. I subconsciously know exactly how many steps from our bedroom door to the top of our stairs. I just had to trust my bodies internal direction.

Walking in our house was one thing. Walking outside was a whole different problem. Every evening my husband and I go for a walk together. We have done this almost every night since we were married. Our nightly walk is something I LOVE. I was unwilling to give it up. So, I closed my eyes, placed my hand in my husband’s hand and let him lead me through our evening walk.

At first, it was difficult. I was scared. However, it didn’t take long before I was moving along comfortably at our normal pace. Why? Because I trust my husband. I know his love for me. I know the quality and composition of his character. He takes his vow to provide for and protect me, wild child that I am, very seriously! No easy task I can assure you! I was able walk beside him blindly, confident in my safety, because I know he cares for me affectionately and watches over me carefully. The same is true when it comes to faith.

To walk by faith, we need two things.

1) We need to put our hand in God’s mighty hand and trust Him to lead us. If we allow Him to, He will guide us safely through, not just COVID, but all of life!

2) Walking by faith requires that we get to know the One we are trusting with our welfare. We need to know God LOVES us! To walk by faith, we need a RELATIONSHIP with Him.

We need to know the quality and composition of His character. We need to believe that He protects and provides for us every minute of every day. We need to know that He cares for us affectionately and watches over us carefully. When we know this, we can cast the whole of our cares; all our worries, anxieties, and all our concerns, regarding the COVID situation and all of life, onto Him and walk by faith. (1 Peter 5:7)

When we know the One making the promises, it becomes easy to live our lives trusting CONFIDENTLY in those promises. Because we KNOW Him, we are able to walk by faith not by sight.

Photo by Vera Arsic

With social distancing being the order of the day and tons of folk working from home, couples and families are finding themselves spending non-stop time together. No matter how much you love your spouse and kids this non-stop togetherness can get stressful! That stress can lead to conflict.

In our home we have two very strong willed, very different personalities. My husband’s means of coping with stress is “a place for everything and everything in its place”. My coping mechanism is doing creative projects. The two styles couldn’t be more in conflict! Creativity does NOT lend itself well to “everything in its place.” According to Joe, it’s more like chaos in motion. He’s right!

In addition, we have polar opposite processing styles. My husband is a sequential processor. I am a random processor. That means when there is a task to be accomplished, he progresses through the steps in an a-z sequential order. Whereas I pop around the steps in a very random way.

Each style has its strengths and weaknesses. His style makes him world class at logistics. If it takes careful planning to execute, he’s your man! The weakness is, if things can’t be executed sequentially it can really throw a wrench in his works. Because I navigate situations randomly, constantly changing variables don’t throw me off as badly. However, I can miss important details by popcorning around a situation.

The thing is, it takes BOTH styles to manage life on a normal basis. In our current environment, having BOTH styles is a HUGE blessing! So, if we are operating with polar opposites, how do we make the most of our differences?

1) Keep in mind that God brought us together as couples for a reason.

He knows our personalities, strengths and weaknesses, better than we do. He paired us with our spouses deliberately. Our combined differences as people are our strengths as a couple. Our spouse’s polar opposites may be the exact balance needed to mitigate our weaknesses. So, value and respect what you each bring to the table.

2) Marriage needs to be other centered.

In the book ” Sacred Marriage” author Gary Thomas suggests that the true purpose marriage is to become more like Christ. Put bluntly, marriage isn’t about meeting my needs. It’s about loving my spouse in the way that Christ loves me and making the needs of another my priority. Managing my chaos may not be the best for my creative process, but it’s good for my husband and our marriage!

Phil 2:3 “Do nothing from selfish or empty conceit, but with an attitude of humility, regard others as more important than yourselves.”

3) As married couples, we aren’t in this alone. We are a threefold cord with God at the center.

Eccl. 4:9 says “Two are better than one.” There are going to be times in all this where each of us will falter, fail and fall. Being married means that we have a companion to lift us up when we go down (Eccl 4:10). We have our combined strength to resist the being overpowered by the problems and stresses. “A cord of three stands is not easily broken” (Eccl 4:12). We need to lean into and on each other and center ourselves in God.

4) Most importantly, we need to extend each other GRACE.

In the devotion “Love Sex and Lasting Relationships” Chip Ingram defines love as “Giving the other person what they need most when they deserve it the least”. This is the ESSENCE of Grace. It is EXACTLY what Christ did for us. He gave up everything, including His life, for the most undeserving people ever! In this time of non-stop togetherness and high stress, we need to extend each other this same kind of grace.

This kind of Grace isn’t easy, but we don’t have to muster it out of our own resources. The Holy Spirit lives in us. He is equipping us with everything we need for life and godliness. He will teach us how to walk in this kind of grace. If we surrender our will to His, He will enable us to give grace even when it’s the last thing we want to do and our marriage will be stronger when this is over!

In this post I am featuring fellow writer Laura Mirriello Campbell. Her thoughtful and vulnerable perspective on the beauty that can be found in this time of social distancing is WELL WORTH the read! There is GREAT value in being still with God especially now. This is a unique opportunity to build our faith in a way that nothing else can. Take it. Revel in it. Celebrate it! Take this time to Build your Faith!

God is our refuge and strength, mighty and impenetrable, a very present help in time of trouble…”Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations! I will be exalted in the Earth.” Ps 46:1, 10 AMP

By Laura Mirello Campbell

Taking a step back. A break. A breather. Social distancing. Whatever you want to call it… it can be a beautiful thing. I have been practicing this for quite a few months now because I have been heart-sick and have been in desperate need of hearing what God would want to speak into the broken places of my heart.

I have been sharply reprimanded by a few people for this. I suppose it’s because some people can’t understand not keeping a full calendar with visits, coffee dates, and luncheons. Don’t get me wrong. I love all these things but I have chosen to be selective in my social engagements.

I think we have become so accustomed to social gatherings and not doing life alone, that we have forgotten that there is a quiet place, and sometimes quiet seasons, where God longs to meet with us and speak/breathe life into the depths of who we are. His desire is to have an intimate relationship with each and every one of us. And sometimes, intimacy requires aloneness.

Think about it… you wouldn’t be intimate with your spouse in front of others, let alone in the midst of a large gathering of people, would you? Of course not… because the intimacy you share/have with your spouse is for you two, alone. It is the time that brings you together as one, it builds and strengthens your relationship. It’s a time when that one person can speak to your heart like no one else.

I believe God desires aloneness with us. I believe He longs to have one on one conversations with us. I believe He wants to speak into the broken places, the dry places, the hurting places, the confused places, the sick places, the addicted places and the anxious places of our hearts like no one else can. But I wonder how many of us can’t hear His call to that secret place because we are so distracted by the noise and priority we have placed on social gatherings?

Now that people all around the world are being forced or cautioned to distance themselves socially… my heart hopes that we will use this time to reconnect with God. That we will find and sit in those secret places of intimacy with Him. I hope we will reconnect with our families. I hope we will be more discerning and be made aware of the needs of others in our communities. I hope that this alone time causes such a deep reach from within that we can’t help but reach out to bless our neighbors by praying for them and with them when possible. Maybe just drop a few necessities on their doorstep or tape cards of encouragement to their storm door.

Aloneness doesn’t always have to mean being alone. It really can mean togetherness. It can speak life and wisdom. It can produce wholeness and healing. It CAN be a beautiful thing.

Find a place to be intimate with the one who loves your soul, deeply and intimately. Take this time when we have been ordered to shelter and take shelter in the one who cares about you with the deepest affection and watches over you carefully (1 Peter5:7 AMP). Build your faith in the One who is unfailingly faithful!

Photo By Betsy Townsend O’Neal

He said, “I will never leave you under any circumstance, desert you nor give up on you, nor leave you without support, nor will I, in any degree leave you helpless. I will not forsake you or let you down or relax My hold on you, assuredly not!” Heb. 13:5b AMP

We often quote this verse when trying to bring comfort and peace of mind to a people facing a variety of crises; from dealing with illness to managing marital difficulties. Its true that God will never desert us to face any situation alone. But if you look at this verse in context it actually about something VERY specific, money.

Everyone is experiencing the effects of COVID on our finances. Many businesses are temporarily shut down. People have lost their source of income completely. Some effects are more subtle but no less difficult. My husband’s company relies heavily on components from China. As COVID has ravaged China, they can’t get their components. No components, no product to sell. No good.

A survey by Northwestern Mutual found that money was the dominant stress for 44% of all Americans. Money worries rank as one of the top three causes of marital conflict. Fear over finances can be directly linked to depression and illness. With COVID creating such chaos, the percentage of Americans stressing over money has skyrocketed.

So how do we manage financial worries in this COVID dominated landscape?

1) Know that this is TEMPORARY! Right now, it feels like COVID has taken over the world and will never go away. There will be aftershocks in our finances from earthquake COVID. BUT, the intensity and level of disruption from the current crisis WILL PASS.

2) Know that God will never leave us or forsake us in any degree by leaving us without support. He will NOT let us down or relax His hold on our lives, EVER. He will provide for us. We may not see or understand the means. It may not come in the way we would have imagined. But it WILL come!

“This is why I tell you to never be worried about your life for all you need will be provided, such as food, water, clothing – everything your body needs…Look at all the birds-do you think they worry about existence? They don’t plant or reap or store up food, yet your heavenly Father provides them each with food. Aren’t you much more valuable to your Father?” Matt 6:25-26 TPT (emphasis added).

God clothes the lilies of the field in unmatched splendor! He clothes the grass that is here today gone tomorrow. If He orders and cares for the world He created for us, WHY would He neglect us? We can trust Him to provide for ALL our needs.

3) We need to be willing to look beyond our own needs to the needs of others. Resist the urge to pull in and horde. When Jesus fed the five thousand, He gave the loaves and fish to the disciples and instructed them to feed the people. He gave the provision. They distributed it. We are Jesus hands and feet on this Earth. God is the provider. We are the stewards.

A wise and good steward takes care of the needs of those within their scope of authority. Jesus returned authority of this Earth to humanity when He died on the cross and rose form the grave. We need to step into that authority and be the stewards God has called us to be. We need to look to the needs of each other and love each other in action! We need to share our surplus and serve without expectation of return.

This crisis won’t last forever. We have the opportunity and privilege to be part of enabling others to come through this and make it to the other side.