Photo by Mpho Mojapelo on Unsplash
making the most of your time, because the days are evil ~Ephesians 5:16
In theory, being quarantined away from the world for weeks at a time should be a gift to a creative writer. Space, time, and quiet are novelists’ best friends. And I’m sure new books are being birthed at this moment by my fellow writers.
But I’m not just a writer. I’m also a wife and a mother of young children. At this moment I give myself the gift of admitting these roles can easily turn into indentured servitude when the government orders everyone to stay in the house all day every day.
That’s neither good nor bad…it just is…and scripture still guides me…
making the most...
Priority rules the day.
God first.
People second.
Work third.
Every morning I take time to read the word and pray to my God. And after that?
Sometimes I need to spend time hugging my teen and telling her I love her and God has a plan for her life and asking about her school courses. Sometimes I need to paint blue waterfall pictures during homeschool art class with my little daughter. Sometimes my husband and I are on opposite wavelengths and we need to come together spiritually and physically. Sometimes I have to cook meals or do hair or clean toilets.
And sometimes I write.
of your time...
Quarantined days don‘t have to become a quarantined daze. So every morning I ask Lord, what would you have me do? His answer always arrives. Sometimes as thunder (no running in a rainstorm). But most often as gentle thoughts: check on your friends now, walk in the sunshine now, cook for your family now.
Write now.
because the days are evil
Constant reporting rules the airwaves and social media channels. It’s easy to get sucked into the negative news cycle. Sixteen hundred deaths in the state. Twenty more infections in the county. Fifty-three fatalities at the local nursing center. Schools won’t reopen. African-Americans are dying at higher rates. Wear masks. Don’t hoard toilet paper. Read this article. Click this YouTube link. and don’t forget to log into your bank account and make sure you got your stimulus money, and if you didn’t, call your bank and fill out this form and contact the IRS and…
oh. my. Lord.
Lord, if Your word is correct — and it is — the simplest and best way to handle this quarantined time is to treat it — and people — with care and consideration, knowing that the days are evil, but You provide directions to those who seek You.
and you have already overcome…