Endurance

And Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9

What a powerful verse. Our good efforts will be paid off if we do not give up. In January our doing good may have been seen by others. We took dinner to a friend struggling. We shoveled snow for a neighbor, or a stranger. We served at a mission, or a soup kitchen or at our church – surrounded by our friends, celebrating God together.

In our current pandemic it can be hard to have the endurance to continue to do good when our actions may feel compacted. We know that staying home is the best way for the most people to do the most good right now. It feels awkward, and counter intuitive. We want to help. Take action. Do something, anything really, to help steer ourselves and those we love away from this emergency. 

In the depths of this desire to do good, we are also suffering from a little Cabin Fever. Or a little too much time with the loved ones who live in our homes. And we are SCARED. The news tells us about supply shortages and a mortality rate that does not seem possible in America. We have watched other countries fail and thought that we were strong enough to survive. We have been in denial about the need to protect ourselves. We have judged the actions and decisions made by others.

In a time where we have nearly every possible bit of infrastructure and technology to stay in our cocoon, we now feel nearly desperate to be out and about. To express our freedoms. To go people watching. To hear live music. To smell and see the things that we are so accustomed to in our everyday life.

This is the time that we must not grow weary. We have to maintain our distance, we have to reduce our risk of exposure, to assure that there are supplies to care for those who are ill. If we can, we need to stay home, as a sign of our care for one another and our focus on doing good. 

Prayer: God of great patience, help us to stay strong during this time. We must remember that, like so many other human inconveniences, this too will pass. Help us to worship you while we are apart and thank you for the technology that helps us to worship together. 

Christi Moock (reprinted from 2020)