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One Day at a Time: Pandemic Version 2021

Being a Person of Peace - Experiencing God | First15 Daily Devotional

It’s been almost a year since I last posted. When our city first went into lockdown in March 2020 I thought that we would be houled up in our homes and backyards for several months and when it was all over we would go back to life as normal, except with really dry skin from all of the hand sanitizer.
Boy was I wrong!

We are now 19 months into this pandemic and my city has some of the highest COVID19 numbers in the country. We even made international news for our government’s incompetence in handling this ongoing crisis.

At the time of writing this we are still under provincial mandates aimed at slowing the spread of the delta variant.

I know I’m not the only one who wishes this would all end. No more over run ICU’s, no more people fighting about vaccinations, conspiracy theories, masks, and passports that don’t involve traveling outside of the country.
I was ready for a first-world problems meltdown when I couldn’t order a bed from IKEA due to their inventory shortage related to COVID19 procedures and process, and whatever other excuses they wrote about.
I had to stop and remember to give thanks that I wasn’t one of the thousands of people who have succumbed to this virus.

I reminded myself that I have been employed throughout the lockdowns and mandatory work from home orders. I haven’t had any material needs since this virus took over our country.

I was also reminded of a record my mother used to play frequently. It was by an artist named Cristy Lane. She had a song on the album called One Day at a Time. I’m posting some of the lyrics here with the hope that it will be more than lyrics to an old song, but rather our prayer as Christians while we continue to hopefully, move closer to witnessing and experiencing the end of this viral pandemic.

One Day at a Time

One day at a time sweet Jesus
That’s all I’m asking from you.
Just give me the strength
To do everyday what I have to do.

Yesterday’s gone sweet Jesus
And tomorrow may never be mine.
Lord help me today, show me the way
One day at a time.

Do you remember, when you walked among men?
Well Jesus you know if you’re looking below
It’s worse now, than then.
Cheating and stealing, violence and crime
So for my sake, teach me to take
One day at a time.

Whatever your situation is in the midst of all these pandemic disruptions, may you take it one day at a time in trusting that God is still with us. Call on the Holy Spirit to guide you as you made daily decisions for safety, community, and well-being.

Spiritual Fitness

God Has Zero Calories

Spiritual Void

God Has Zero Calories

You’re probably wondering about the ridiculous title, but it’s an expression that I have been repeating to myself over the past few days.

The past few weeks have been filled with anxiety, frustration, and doubt which means it’s also been filled with mostly unconscious desires to stuff my face with all things sugary, processed, and fattening.  I eventually realized that I had returned to eating foods that I have banned from my house and my mouth. The evidence was there; Oreo cookie crumbs on my desk, candy wrappers in my handbag, and a recycle bag filled with juice boxes and a couple cans of pop. There was no denying that I was trying to ease (or possibly ignore) my anxiety by consuming junk food. It was time to face whatever it was that was causing myself to be uneasy and I knew the only way for me to do this was to turn up my faith practices.

rise up do battle

Turning to God with your fears, hopes, disappointments and so forth, is not always an automatic response for us. I approached God in prayer with the following words, “Aaarrgghh, o.k. God!” Whenever I say “O.K. God!”, it is never a happy occasion. I usually only say this when I’ve attempted to do things my way and have failed. This expression comes as a result of not following my gut feelings, my intuition, and most importantly the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

My default response to having anxiety that is off the Richter is to turn to food. I have had to work hard to disable this automatic behaviour.  Turning to food is always a lose-lose situation; turning to God is always a win-win situation.

Some Benefits of Turning to God Instead of Food:

  • God has zero calories
  • His Spirit guides you towards making healthy decisions in response to whatever is worrying you
  • Experiencing growth in your faith and an increase in trusting God and yourself
  • Anxiety, fear, and worry decrease
  • Feeling a sense of calmness
  • You engage in mindfulness and meditation which has numerous benefits for the mind and body
  • Negative thoughts slowly turn into a heart and mind filled with hope
  • Not feeling alone

For others their experiences will result in a different list of benefits. I’ve written this post as a reminder for all of us that turning to food never helps us deal with life challenges. For those who turn to exercise instead of food, that might be a healthier alternative, but it is still a form of avoidance. Once you’re through exercising, undo your laces, put down the weights, lock up your bike, whatever you need to put aside; and take the time to pray to God about all that is causing you uneasiness.

Isaiah 55:6 “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.”

be-anxious-for-nothing

QUESTION: Are there any automatic responses that you’ve developed as a reaction to continuous stress, anxiety, or worry? Do these responses help you to face the cause of your uneasiness or do they enable you to avoid looking at what is troubling you?

ACTION: When you are stressed, worried, or filled with anxiety, take all those mental and emotional burdens to the LORD. He is there waiting for you, He is with you already, you just have to acknowledge his presence.

Find bible verses that address the topic of stress and use the ones you like as a form of meditation. Meditate on these verses when you feel overwhelmed with anxiety or worry.

 May you be blessed by the peace God has given you!