Author: Candace Read

It Is Well

It’s Sunday morning and I’m one of just a handful of people sitting in church. It’s weird. I don’t like it. I miss people. I miss Rachel claiming her carpet square for worship. I miss Syreeta herding kids upstairs. I miss the kids from youth talking in the back corner after service. I miss watching Vanessa dance at the altar and I miss trying to beat Tequila out of the building, so we don’t have to lock up. I miss normal.

I sit, missing normal, listening to Pastor Eb describe in great detail the disturbing times we live in. My mind is racing. My thoughts are on my babies. Our youngest, Melina was born with defects and requires a bit more care. We can’t just pick her up and go. I need to pack a bag. I need formula and water for a least a few days. I need her emergency g-tube replacement. I need her medications and her reflux meds need to be refrigerated so I need an ice pack. Is it sensible to take up room in the truck with the double stroller? Should I just bring the baby carrier? To where are we even running? She throws up a lot so she needs a lot of outfits and burp rags and blankets and bibs and on and on and on.  I’m freaking out. I don’t like uncertainty. I like when things work. I don’t want to know how or why; I just want them to work.

Then, not in a still small voice, but in the voice of a parent, I hear, “Calm down. You know I’m not surprised by this.” Well…duh.

My life is framed by faith. The babies I describe are only here by faith. Yet at the slightest inconvenience, I completely forget where I come from. I wilt like a sad dandelion. How many internal melt downs is it going to take for me to get it? Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still, and know…”, but that’s the problem. I do know. I’ve always known, yet here I am. I’m questioning The One who has never left me, who always pays my bills, who always fills my gas tank. He’s given me a nice, cushy life. I was raised in church and Christian school, so growing up I was surrounded by inspiration and examples of faith. It certainly helped. So why am I letting my ancestors down? Mind you, this is all happening in about ten seconds.

That “calm down” was all I needed. He’s got this. I know a lot of people welcome the end times, but honestly, I don’t. It doesn’t mean I don’t look forward to eternity, but it’s the uncertainty. It makes me nervous. If you see me as weak, that’s ok, I’m just human. If you are enjoying this, I’m a little jealous. Again, I just want normal.

The great Jenn Johnson sings, “It Is Well”, which has become my anthem. This is the song The Lord drops in my spirit every time there is a challenge and every time I feel uneasy. And it is well. He knew this was coming and He knew I would freak out. He knew exactly what Melina would need. He knew and He was not surprised.

“So let go, my soul, and trust in Him. The waves and wind still know his name.”

Guest Post Written by Bianca Johnson 

RESPONSE

The word “response” and its variants are words we are very familiar with. When 9/11 happened, we talked frequently about the “first responders” and how they were heroes and how many died tried to save others. Today we talk of the various world leaders and how they and their governments are “responding” to the Coronavirus. In the spiritual world, many spiritual leaders are talking about how we are or should be responding to this crisis. A response is a reaction, an action taken as a result of some other event.

Coronavirus is an event that has occurred to the whole world. I cannot recall another event in my lifetime that had such a large world response, since World War II occurred prior to my birth. Certainly, God was not surprised by this event and He was not pondering what His response would be.  Daniel 2:21 says (NKJV), “And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding.” The times and seasons and governments of this world are not unknown to Him and are still under His jurisdiction whether they recognize His jurisdiction or not. Whether you believe that Coronavirus started in a laboratory or a wet market does not really matter, since God knows where and how it started. Like the old song says, “He’s got the whole world in His hands”.

Many people struggle with the concept of God in a world that has so much trouble and evil. Of course, their understanding is clouded because they lack God’s knowledge: that trouble and evil started with our sin and continues because of our sin and is exacerbated due to the enemy’s involvement. So we can rightfully conclude that Coronavirus is in some way connected to our sin and likely connected in some way with the evil one. We must understand also that some of the effects of sin are effects on the natural world around us. Romans 8:20-22 (TPT) says, “20 For against its will the universe itself has had to endure the empty futility resulting from the consequences of human sin. But now, with eager expectation, 21 all creation longs for freedom from its slavery to decay and to experience with us the wonderful freedom coming to God’s children. 22 To this day we are aware of the universal agony and groaning of creation, as if it were in the contractions of labor for childbirth.” We can rightfully blame ourselves for the trouble and “groaning” of creation, which means that we must soberly consider that even the current crisis is on our own shoulders, even if there is some element of the enemy’s involvement.

God knew of this crisis before it occurred, and God has allowed this consequence of sin to occur. Many consequences of sin are all around us every day (murder, decay, death, sickness, etc.). But this virus is particularly “in our face” because of the direct consequences to our lives and our livelihood, and the lives of our friends and loved ones. We, as Paul described in Romans 8, are looking for a day in which we are not enslaved to decay and death, a day in which creation is no longer “groaning” and affecting our lives.

What we must recognize is that there is “someone” who is “in our face” right now, someone who is more important than Coronavirus. God is “in the midst” of every situation that occurs on earth, and He is especially “in the midst” of every believer’s life. This is what I hear the Spirit of the Lord saying, that He is listening, and He is watching for our “response” to this crisis. There are many ways we can respond and many different arenas that He is watching for a response from.

If you have ever faced a crisis in your life before, then you know there are two ways to respond from a spiritual standpoint: you can turn to God with your whole heart, or you can run to other places of so-called comfort. You come to a fork in the road, and you can choose “better” or “bitter”. When faced with the crisis of a divorce in the year 2000, I immersed myself in God, immersed myself in the Word, and abandoned myself for Him. I felt He was my only hope for me and for my children. That complete surrender to Him paid off in so many ways in my life that I cannot quantify the benefits. I am still benefiting from the surrender from 20 years ago. I ran to God, and like the prodigal son’s father, He ran to me. I have never been the same.

As I sit here and write, this is the song going through my head (“It is Well” by Bethel Music – partial lyrics):

And through it all, through it all

My eyes are on You

And it is well

It is well

 

So let go my soul and trust in Him

The waves and wind still know His name

So let go my soul and trust in Him

The waves and wind still know His name.

How are you responding to Him in this crisis? How are you responding to the One “in your face”? If you haven’t noticed Him there, notice Him now. He is the “Master of the Wind”, as another song says. Your eyes should be on Him and none else. Your focus should be on Him and on none else. There is no One else that can lead us out of this storm. There is no One else that can still the wind and waves. Peter cried, “Lord, save me!” (Matthew 14:30) when he was sinking in the waves, after he had tried to walk on the water but became fearful. And Jesus immediately reached out His hand and saved him.

It is time for us as the people of God to be solely focused on Jesus, to be solely focused on His rescue, to be solely focused on the One who died to save us. As we commemorate our Savior’s death, burial and resurrection this week (today is Good Friday), it is more than appropriate for us to turn to Him. In the news yesterday they announced that the Coronavirus deaths are expected to peak this Sunday in the United States. Sunday is Easter – the celebration of Christ’s resurrection from the dead, the celebration of deliverance from death to life, the celebration of deliverance from evil, the celebration of our ability to go behind the veil and enter into an intimate relationship with the Father. How interesting is it that God purposed this week in the United States to be the celebration of the most Holy Week and the turning point of the virus’ deaths? What does that say about how God orchestrates the world, our governments, the seasons and times, and a testament to His glory?

Are you turning to Him with your whole heart this season? Are you focused on worshipping Him this Easter season, focusing on the life He came to give us, and the rescue He accomplished? Or are your eyes and ears focused on the wind and waves of this season? Let your anthem be, “through it all my eyes are on You”.

 

Guest Post Written by Sonja Josselyn  

EASTER & COVID-19

WISDOM VS. FEAR

It’s Easter again. The weather is starting to get a little bit nicer. The flowers and trees are starting to bloom. But the sad part is-we can’t get together with folks and enjoy the activities we normally would this time of year. It’s not as festive as it usually is. As we all know, a terrible virus has hit our world and instead of celebrating with others we are all locked in the house on strict Stay-In-Orders. Many of us are personally battling sickness. Some have even lost loved ones due to the virus. So, you may be asking yourselves what does this virus have to do with Easter. Well historically this is actually not the first time that folks were shut in the house during Easter due to a virus. The bible has so many stories that relate to modern day life. We are going to take a look at two in particular.

EXODUS 12: 1-30

Now we have heard this story a thousand times. But let’s take a look at it through the lens of COVID-19. Now please hear me when I say this. I am not suggesting that God sent COVID-19 to kill people as His judgment. I am merely pointing out some similarities of what happened then and the state of where we are today. I find it interesting that God had a strict set of orders to get the Israelites ready for the plague hitting the land as we do today. The one we focus on the most is putting the blood around the door post. But this story talks about so much more. It talks about how they were to prepare their food. It goes into things like taking into consideration how many folks were in a household. How much a person will eat. In what manner to not to eat the food. How to get rid of the leftovers. How to dress while they eat. Even down to how fast to eat. All of these orders would seem to be extreme in an average situation but to them it was life or death. In the same way, today we have been given a set of guidelines that are supposed to help save our lives. Now I am also not getting into the conversation about Christians not needing to do what has been mandated by the government. That is between you and your God. I am again making a comparison of the similarities on the extreme measures they took in the bible and what we are doing today. Now what I was referring to earlier about the Israelites being given a Stay-In-Order is in verse 22. God specifically says “None of you shall go out of the door of your house until morning”. Yes, this did come from God and not the government but what I am highlighting here is how the people responded to the situation they were in until the plague passed over. Just like us, Israel had to adjust to those rules and learn to sit tight in the house while all hell was breaking loose around them. Just like we wake up every morning to the latest news report of how many people have died, their news report was listening to the Egyptians around them wailing over the dead bodies they found in their homes. To put it simple, they had to trust that God would preserve them through a tragic time. We must do the same and wait for our morning to come, no matter how long it takes because it will eventually come. And how ironic that all this was happening around what could be considered the first Easter. Now let’s take a look at another Easter story where the people of God were shut in.

JOHN 20:19-31

It is Easter night. The disciples are locked in the house but this time it wasn’t because of a command from God, it was out of fear of the people that killed Jesus. They too had to deal with the loss of a loved one when just a few days earlier they watched him die a terrible death. In verse 13, Mary stood at Jesus grave and said these words, “They have taken my Lord away, and I don’t know where they have put him.” Doesn’t that sound like those who have lost loved ones today. A lot of folks don’t even know where they have been taken. They just pack them up in a truck and throw them in some ditch. The disciples also had to deal with the fear that it may happen to them next if they came out of the house. Look at the high range of emotions here. Now ask yourself this question: Are you staying in the house out of fear or out of wisdom and common sense? It’s ok that you are staying in and being safe. But why? There is a lot of pressure as a Christian to be brave and believe that nothing will happen to us during this time. And God willing it won’t. There is also a silent guilt being projected on Christians if you decide to take a break from congregating with people. Christians are questioning whether they should be wearing mask & gloves and practicing Social Distancing. There are a wide range of reasons people are doing what they are doing. Some folks are at higher risk than others due to pre-existing conditions. Some folks have families and small children to considers. Some folks just simply may have symptoms and don’t want to expose others to them. So, it’s not always a matter of not having enough faith. But you have to decide for yourself if you are shut in out of fear or out of wisdom. Now on the other-hand there is pressure to be afraid of everything and to feel like you can never go outside. There is pressure to overreact in the most common scenarios like going to the store or places you need to go to do the things you need to do. This type of mindset I would say is based in fear and is exactly where the disciples in this story were operating from. The most awesome part about this story is that Christ entered their situation behind closed doors and encouraged them by saying “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” This is the secret weapon to survive during this time. The peace of God. Not only did he give them peace but he gave them the authority to go out amongst those whom they were afraid of. Now if you read down a little further to verse 26, about a week later they were back in the same situation, locked up in the house, meaning they didn’t quite get it the first time. LOL!! But that’s ok. The point to all this is that fear is going to do its job and attack but each of us personally have to find our own way to overcome and that may look different than some people. We all have to define for ourselves what works for us and our family. But we cannot be ruled by fear of this disease or even the fear of what others think. That is unnecessary added pressure to what we are already facing. Look at how Jesus responded the second time he caught them shut up in the house in verse 26. He gave them the exact same encouragement he gave before. “Peace be with you.”  He understands our tendency to fear and is more than willing to help us overcome it and even comfort us through it. And again, how ironic is it that the people of God had to face similar conditions around the actual very first Easter. We are no strangers to trials on this holiday weekend. It’s a part of our spiritual heritage. In conclusion, whether we are like the Israelites who stayed in out of adhering to instructions of wisdom or we are like the disciples that stayed in out of fear, God is willing to meet us were we are and help us get through this situation. Let’s not let COVID-19 kill Jesus. Happy Easter and more importantly Happy Resurrection Sunday!!

 

Guest Post Written by Mo Diggs 

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