quarantine – Wild Woman. Wild Minister. Wild Writer.

Ministering in the Darkness

It’s been four weeks. Four weeks without church groups. Four weeks without in-person Bible study. Four weeks without the camaraderie of soccer. Four weeks without socializing face-to-face. It feels like much longer.

It’s been four weeks of suspended plans and dreams. It’s been four weeks in which trip planning has given way to saving in case we need that money later. It’s been four weeks of hearing conspiracy theories and people foolishly saying, “I’ve got more faith than I have fear. I’m not afraid of getting sick!” That’s all well and good, but what about the people they could unknowingly infect? Love for others needs to be our driving motivation, not fear for ourselves.

It’s also Holy Friday. It’s the day we Christians remember the supreme sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. It’s the day that God’s love found its ultimate fulfillment as Jesus died to overcome death for us. This is the day we remember Jesus’ example of sacrificial love. So I ask, if Jesus can sacrifice so much for us vulnerable, sin-wracked humans, why are we griping so much about sacrificing our conveniences for the safety and health of others, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ?

This time of social isolation is trying, most definitely, but it gives us new opportunities to reach out in different ways. I have found that I am being more intentional about giving positive words, whether they are delivered in person (from ten feet away, of course) or online. It’s not that hard to be encouraging. It only takes ten key strokes to type “Great job!” We are all called to minister, to reach out, to love. There are ways to do this from our homes:

Instant messaging or texts to tell someone you’re thinking of them, or, better, to ask, “How are you doing?”
An email to reach out and let someone who loves you know how you’re doing.
Snail mailed notes to say, “I just wanted to say hi.”
Phone calls or vid chats to connect. (This is especially important for grandparents.)
(I saw this idea in a group) A serial story that you snail mail to children or grandchildren. Imagine the heart bonds formed from sharing something from your history!
Encouraging words on a social media post.

I encourage us all to minister in our new and different situations. It’s hard, but it also has the bonus of taking us out of ourselves for just a few minutes, which gives us a few minutes of not feeling anxious or fearful, and that peace is valuable.

Seven Years of Quarantine Prep

Y’all, I spent seven years of my life preparing for shelter in place.

As a Gen Xer, we were raised to follow rules for staying in the house. We were the generation of latchkey kids. Every day from sixth through twelfth grade, we rode the bus home from school, let ourselves into our homes, and followed our parents’ rules. My parents’ rules are remarkably like the rules we’re following now.

Rule #1: Come in and lock the door. I always keep our doors locked, anyway. Too many years of city life following living by myself ingrained that habit in me.

Rule #2: Call me (Mom 98% of the time) as soon as you get home. This phone call usually was my chance to tell her about my day and also to get instructions. My parents and I email often, but since the social isolation started, it’s every day.

Rule #3: Don’t let anyone in the house. My own cousin who lived next door wasn’t even supposed to come over. Haha. Nope. If you don’t bathe here, you’re not coming in at this time.

Rule #4: Don’t leave the house. I could be in the yard and on the back deck, but I couldn’t go for a bike ride or a walk on the street, couldn’t visit with friends. Sound familiar? Same stuff, different decade/century/millenium, except now I can be out on the street since I’m an adult.

Rule #5: Get your work done before you play or watch TV. I honestly don’t get those folks who can binge-watch Netflix all day. I can barely sit still through a movie. Even though we have all day to play, school still happens. I tell my younger, “Get your work done. Then you can play without worrying about having to work.” We still have a rule, no matter what, school work and chores have to be completed before TV and friend time.

Rule #6: Do xyz to help prepare for dinner. Mom didn’t get home until around 5:30, and she always wanted to have dinner on the table as close to 6 as possible. Most days, this meant I had to clean chicken (ew!) or make spaghetti sauce. In these days of social isolation, cooking is still enjoyable. We experiment, and we work together to pull dinner together.

If you’re a Gen Xer, then you were made to survive. We handled being on our own for hours at a time perfectly fine. We followed the simple rules of our parents and that usually was enough to keep us healthy and out of trouble. We can do it again now, too.

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