Loving Well, Hearing Clearly and Choosing Peace

2020 Made A Sharp Turn

To be honest with you, my family's 2020 started off really well. My younger brother and his wife were about to have another child that is due during my birth month (May 15); my sister is engaged and we were planning her wedding, bridal shower, etc for end of 2020 and wedding in 2021; I had just been accepted into a prestigious theatrical producing program run by the Commercial Theater Institute which was held weekly at The Broadway League. For the three of us, it was a strangely calm time where we weren't grieving or something traumatic was happening. On March 12th everything changed dramatically for most of our country. We all know what happened, this post isn't about that. This post is about how we continue to keep the peace that passes all understanding and look forward to the future even when the future looks uncertain and strange. We are in a moment where God is reminding us that we've always had less control then we thought we did.  

Careful What You Ingest 

 I've been getting messages from other Believers who are pretty anxious, looking for answers and passing along what they believe are answers to their fears. I haven't been looking at these messages. I don't find them very helpful. They don't usually give me more insight than what I can pray and ask God for the clarity and vision to know what He is doing in our midst. I truly believe that we are in a time where we have to be listening to the Holy Spirit and asking for his leading. When He speaks, we must be obedient quickly. Nothing that is happening right now should be a surprise to Believers who have sought God and His Word, and nothing that may happen in the future should be a shock. (Matthew 24:42-44) False prophets have been running rampant for quite sometime already and every time something like this happens I hear the same words, "judgement", "God's wrath", etc. (Matthew 7:15-20) I do not deny that much of the world either never acknowledged God or if they did has turned their back. I do not deny that we are a sinful people in need of repenting and God's grace. Being sinful and in need of repentance is the basis for our faith.
I have noticed that there is an agenda with a lot of these "prophecies" and I will no longer ingest everything. For the past seven years the Lord has been preparing me for this and I have been very particular about what "prophetic words" I allow into my spirit. We must be careful of fear and not allow it to cloud our judgement. Because we are all sinful in nature,we must check the word. When you hear the same phrases told in different ways condemning the same people every time, you have to stop and think.  Or when we've heard the same prosperity words repeatedly but have seen that not change the lives of many for the better, you have to stop, think and pray. Who are these words for? Who are these words from? What is their fruit? What do they really believe? Who are they pointing us to? When I hear "prophetic words" of condemnation and judgement but the ones being hurt the worst by this pandemic are people of color and the poor, it gives me great pause. Poor people of color also pray and go to church in high numbers. Is the person saying these things even aware of the fact that the people most affected are the people that if Jesus were here today he would be a part of? Jesus was a person of color, who was poor and a refugee. The communities that these "prophets" seem very interested in condemning are the least affected. Yes, help the poor and needy. Fight for the motherless and the refugees, but then do not be so unaware of your privilege that you do not realize you are condemning us out of the other side of your mouth. Because many of those you are condemning aren't. (Matthew 25:34-40; Proverbs 4:23-24)

Loving Others Well

I have seen a lot of Believers and Non-Believers do beautiful things during this pandemic. I have seen individuals from all backgrounds, faiths and political leanings rise to this occasion with strength, leadership and love for others. I have also seen people take each other down and allow agendas to kill their witness or hurt people who do not agree with them. I have seen churches still meet because, yes, my God can do all things and He is all powerful and he can protect us. But why would you put other people's lives at risk? How is that showing the love of our Father? How is that being a good witness? Staying home, washing your hands, disinfecting and socially distancing does not mean we do not trust God. It means we have wisdom (Proverbs 4:4-9) 

Why have we equated our faith with only being able to meet within a building? What happened to the church without walls? God is only asking us to go back to our Jesus roots. If he did it without a building and in homes, why can't we? We are made in God's image so we can. (Mark 12:29-31; 2 Cor 6:16; Acts 2:42-47)

I have also heard from other Believers and Non-Believers that there are prophecies and conspiracy theories going around that this quarantine may not end, this is only the beginning and someone did this on purpose. Here's what I say to the Believers, if that is true, why are you surprised?  Daniel and Revelation are there to give us a blueprint for things like this.  I have been praying and will continue. But you also need to hold your peace and remember who is in control. Remember who is on the throne. There is no doubt that things will be dramatically different after this pandemic. Some things for the better and others for the worse, but again, if you keep communion with the Holy Spirit then there should be no surprises and He will lead us.(Prov. 25:2; Joshua 1:7-9) Pray without ceasing. (1Thess 5:16-18)

Peace that Passes Understanding 

Fear tends to be the root of most of humankind's issues. Fear of the unknown, fear of others, fear of freedom being lost, fear of too much freedom; I could go on and on. But we have been told repeatedly by God to not be afraid because He is with us. (Joshua 1:9; Phil 4:6-9) And since He is with us, we can ask him for wisdom, knowledge and understanding.  We can ask him how to love will during this time and how to be good disciples. We can ask how to be His hands and feet.  We can also be obedient and understand that we don't know everything and that humility is also commanded of us. Anxiety, divisiveness, anger and fear are not our portion. Peace, joy, love and wisdom are our inheritance. This is a time for the church to shine and to lead the way in loving well. We should be rising up out of an abundance because we know whom we serve and that He has the cattle on a thousand hills. God is giving us this time to spend with him, deep in prayer, knowing His voice better and learning how to trust Him more. Yes, things will be different and yes, we may feel shaken but we know whom we can trust and He is in us and He is our refuge. (Psalm 46)

Lastly, a friend sent me this quote from a Martin Luther book which he wrote while going through a plague. This is what it says:

"I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine, and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance inflict and pollute others and so cause their death as a result of my negligence. If God should wish to take me, He will surely find me, and I have done what He has expected of me and so I am not responsible for either my own death or the death of others. If my neighbor needs me however, I shall not avoid place or person but will go freely as stated above. See this is such a God-fearing faith because it is neither brash nor foolhardy and does not tempt God." (Martin Luther, Works v. 43, p. 132.)."