- One of the hardest, yet necessary, lessons God has been working out in me is PATIENCE. And it is a lesson I don't want to be quick to forget! There was a time not too long before covid when we were having week after week of our small group Bible study with our church family and patience was the theme. Whether it be coworkers, family members, finances, church decisions, whatever it was we spent many a weeks praying together for God to give us patience. Can I just say OH LORD, I think we have the message! If there is one thing the Lord has confirmed to me it is that I am not supposed to be a teacher. Talk about learning patience. We've been doing this remote school thing for almost a year now and I feel like I am just now starting to get my footing. Anyway, by about April last year when everything was shut down, school was not starting up anytime soon, I was dealing with a very social 6 year old who was now not allowed to be around people, also a very social and extroverted husband who now was not leading a church in person nor was he able to be out and about in the neighborhood as usual, I can look back and realize God was working on me. Of course it starts at home, where it's often so hard to live out these lessons! When you have a daughter who repeatedly lets you know "you're my mom, you are not my teacher", wants nothing at all to do with school at home, cries multiple times a day out of anger and worry and a whole lot of fear, you need God-given patience. When you have a husband who now has to lead a church from behind a camera and is at home, getting in your space almost 24/7 (now don't get me wrong, I love my husband!), you need God-given patience. However, our prayer for patience shouldn't stop there. As we encounter people on a daily basis with different political views, as we shop in stores with our neighbors, as we ride the subway, as we view social media posts that go against every fiber of our being, as we rub shoulders EVERY SINGLE DAY with someone who has probably lost a loved one to covid or have had to fight it themselves, may I be someone who is quick to give others the benefit of the doubt and an extra dose of patience. The people around me are fighting some big battles and as God has given me grace upon grace I pray that this year I would be one who is quick to extend grace to those around me.
Maria and Moses in the very early days of remote schooling. Having them sit side by side didn't last long! We're coming up on a year of remote schooling and I'm just beginning to feel like it is working okay, sometimes. So much patience!
Here is a behind the scenes look at our home recording studio in the early days. It evolved, I feel like we became a little better at it, but man was it an adjustment!
Our neighbors, our people, during the height of the pandemic. Many of them dress differently than me, have different skin colors, and different political views. But so many stopped here for prayer. May we always be people who stop, listen, and have patience for those God places in our path. - The second lesson which came out of this past year has been to slow down and FOCUS ON THE FAMILY. I read a Bible verse during the height of the pandemic that has taken hold of my heart. It is 1 Timothy 6:20 and the first part of it says "Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you." It is literally translated "guard the deposit". In this letter from Paul to Timothy he is most likely referring to "the faith" or "the gospel" which was under attack by false teachers. The gospel ministry is proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ and is to be transmitted through the generations by His followers. It is my responsibility to guard the gospel message - to faithfully proclaim and protect it. The greatest way I can guard my faith and the message of the gospel is to pass it on to my children. Yes we have our church, yes I believe that God still wants to use the church to carry the gospel message to the ends of the earth. We would not be here planting a church in the Bronx if we didn't believe that. However, as we were suddenly confronted with much more time together last year and as I came face to face with the fact that these two little humans were watching my every move, my every reaction, hearing every word that came out of my mouth in response to the world around me I realized more than ever that my calling is to teach them the message of the gospel. My greatest desire while they are at home with me is to make sure they know The Truth and can stand on it when they are out in the world. Being a Christian is not going to get easier as they grow up. The gospel seems more than ever to be under attack by false teachers. Truth is hard to come by. 2020 taught me more than ever to be intentional about teaching my kids the gospel and in that respect I am forever grateful for the trials of the past year. So yes we are still doing remote school, but more than that we are making it our first priority to memorize Scripture, study the Bible, and learn who Jesus is and why he is the only truth that we can hold on to. It sure took me awhile to grasp this concept....God's still working on me for sure. Not only did focusing on the family mean being more intentional with teaching the gospel, but 2020 also gave us ample time to focus on family TIME together! We had a lot of family walks, hikes, exploring opportunities, camping trips and vacations together. I am forever grateful for the memories we made in 2020 and the extra time we had together and I hope that's something we carry over into this new year and years to come.
- The third lesson that came out of the chaos of last year is to DO SOMETHING. As shelves became empty in stores, people were furloughed or laid off completely, lines to get into stores were wrapped around buildings and down sidewalks, sickness was prevalent, fear and anxiety could be felt just walking the streets of our neighborhood, God spoke to our hearts to do something. We did not know what to do though. My ever doubting self was full of thoughts along the lines of "we are such a small church what can we really do" or "the need is so great how can we really help all these people"? I tend to think along the lines of wanting to help everyone with everything, which can get exhausting. Anyway, God is so gracious with us to continue to lead and guide and teach us to trust Him because through Him all things are possible. So what did we do? We went after toilet paper and hand sanitizer! After talking with one of our church members who told us some not so pleasant details about not being able to get toilet paper God pushed us in the direction to try and gather personal care items and give them to our neighbors....thus began our "Blessing Bag" ministry! Through videos, pleas for help, and the generosity and kindness of our partners and brothers and sisters in Christ here in the Bronx and ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY, we were able to make bags of supplies such as toilet paper, masks, disposable gloves, hand soap, hand sanitizer, and some other blessings. I can never say THANK YOU enough to each of you who have given, prayed for us, donated supplies, sent groceries and helped us be the hands and feet of Jesus. I will also never forget the first Saturday I went out to White Plains Road in our neighborhood with a couple of our church members and about 80 ziploc bags to hand out. They were gone faster than we could get them out of the car and a man who didn't get a bag got rather upset and said "That's all you've got? That's nothing!" So we told him we would be back there next week, same time and same place with more bags. Week after week God provided more supplies. Week after week our church had volunteers show up and donate time, money, and efforts to help reach our neighbors. Week after week we did something. Did everyone get a bag every week? Unfortunately not. But as we transitioned to grocery bags and now do it on a monthly basis we are doing what we can. The saying which goes "no one can do everything, but everyone can do something" is so true. I still believe as we work together and all do a little bit we can make a big difference! So my prayer in 2021 and years to come is that I would continue do something. Find a way to be a blessing. Take cookies to neighbors. Deliver food to the family fighting covid or some other illness. Send a card to someone in the mail just to check in. My kids just recently got done making cards for some people in our church. There are numerous ways we can do something to help meet a physical need. As believers live out the gospel and sincerely love our neighbors as we love ourselves, we can spur the church and other believers on to do the same; and I have to believe the more people show the love of Jesus to a lost and dying world the more the good news of Jesus will spread like a wildfire. As the lost people around us see followers of Jesus Christ genuinely loving on our communities, their eyes and hearts will be opened to hear more about the one who can meet not just their physical needs but also ALL of their spiritual needs and satisfy their deepest longings.
- As I was going back through some photos of the past year I saw more and more pictures of my kids with ice cream, or some type of treat. I do not ever want to forget to EAT THE ICE CREAM. Let's celebrate the small stuff, and the big stuff too of course. My daughter made it through the day without having a meltdown? Celebrate! I made it through the day without having a meltdown? Definitely a celebration! The sun is shining? Celebrate! You survived another day at work without losing it with one of your coworkers? Celebrate! God woke you up and gave you another day and another breath? Celebrate! He healed you or your family from covid? Have a great big celebration! Okay maybe not ice cream every time, but you get the idea. Find some way to talk about, smile about, and commemorate what God has done. Heck, bang on a pot with all your neighbors to show you support and celebrate those who are on the front lines fighting this nasty virus. I want to always remember the joy on my kids faces just to be able to open the window, make some noise, and celebrate living to see another day! Especially after a year like 2020 I feel like I became much more aware of His blessings, big and small, and that's a mindset I pray will stay with me for as long as I live! We have not advertised this to many but my sweet Maria started seeing a therapist towards the end of last year. I was already concerned about some of the behaviors she had been exhibiting from the onset of the pandemic and after talking to her pediatrician she referred us to a pediatric psychiatrist. She struggled immensely this past year, especially at the beginning of everything. So we have been meeting with this doctor approximately every 2 weeks since November and it has been such a blessing. She has given us several things to do at home with Maria to help her overcome her fear, anxiety, and worry. At our most recent visit Maria told her that one of the problems she had been having had gone from a 10 (meaning it was at the top of her list causing her fear and anxiety) to a 0. Guess what the doctor said about that? Yep, she said you need to get out and celebrate with that girl! Praise her, let others know how far she has come, make it a big deal. Life isn't forever, we are not promised tomorrow, so let's celebrate what God has done today.
- Finally, God has impressed upon my heart this past year that LIFE IS FLEETING. Death is final. We have had some very hard conversations recently about death with individuals who are hurting, suffering, and trying to make sense of all that is going on in the world. God has been speaking to my heart that as a Christian I need to be bold. I need to speak up. I must be ready to share Christ with a world that so desperately needs him. If you're still here then it's not too late. God's not done with you yet! The amount of lives lost here in NYC and across the globe is unfathomable to me. It makes me sick to think about. However, the people in my circle, who I cross paths with everyday, who may not be physically dying but are spiritually dying, those are the people I need to pray for, love on, and speak up to about Jesus before it's too late. I truly believe Jesus will make his return sooner rather than later. Have I done all I can to share Jesus and make sure my neighbors, my community, my friends have a personal relationship with God through His son Jesus Christ? This sense of urgency in the gospel is a lesson I want to keep near to my heart until the Lord makes his return.
These people are waiting in line to get a little help meeting their physical needs. May we be quick to remember the people we know who so desperately need to have their spiritual needs met.
I will end with this video. It's a clip of one of my favorite memories from last year. Also, please don't mind the crazy screaming kid. She gets really, really excited, like A LOT. 😄
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