Thankful in the Storm

I have not written any posts these last couple of weeks, not because I haven’t had anything to say, or because I haven’t had time. The fact is I have had a lot of opinions I would have liked to express, and one of the repercussions of COVID-19 is that I have lots of free time on my hands as it brought to an abrupt end a very busy period in ministry.  However, just because I have something to say doesn’t mean I should say it.  I have found there have been a lot of misinformation and falsehoods being disseminated through not only social media, but also mainstream media.  It is an irresponsible practice to publish all that comes our way, even those that may look godly as they may not be of God.  So, during this period let us pray for discernment and take the time to wait on God to know what to say, when to say it, how to say it and to whom to say it. In addition, another important question to ask ourselves is, “Why are we saying it?”  God is very much concerned about the motives of our heart. Therefore, let us make sure that the attitude of our heart is one that God would be pleased with.

Now that I have gotten that out of the way, I will get on with what God would have me say at this time.  Last week, I had a dream that I had my own house and there were a lot of people over moving around.  I stood on my front porch beside one of my guests and as we looked at an orange tree in my yard I complained that I could not get any oranges now as they were all green.  The person showed me a fruit that was almost ripe near the top of the tree, and then another that was fully ripe above that.  I had not looked up and I wouldn’t have if I didn’t have someone to point me in the right direction of the fruit that I longed for that were there ready to be picked.   Sometimes we miss the blessings that are in our midst, and we may need someone to direct our attention to the good work that the Lord is doing in our lives.  Our focus should not be on what we do not have, but rather we need to shift our perspective to see clearly that we are being blessed even in this chapter of uncertainty, which is sure to make the history books. God did not stop driving home this point to me. It was either that day or the next, I am not remembering which now, I was packing lunch bags to bring to my children since there is no gathering at church right now and I had the food for their snacks for church. Plus, I wanted to check in on them and give a couple families groceries, but I had no fruit to put in the lunch bags.  I decided I shouldn't worry about it as I couldn’t get any fruit at that time.  While packing the bags, the phone rang.  It was a neighbor who said the Lord had clearly told her to buy oranges for me while at the supermarket. I thanked her, explaining that I started rationing oranges just that day.  But, on hanging up the phone, I realized the oranges were not for me, instead God had supplied the fruit for my children’s lunch bags.  God had provided in my lack, and the next day when I brought groceries to one of the families in need, the grandmother gave me more than half a dozen oranges.  My Heavenly Father is not a God of lack, but of abundance and does the impossible by making a way when there seems to be no way.  Consequently, we can trust Him to take the wheel and navigate us safely as we journey down this challenging road that COVID-19 has put us on.  

The whole world is going through a major crisis, yet we now have the opportunity to step back and see God at work, making a wonderful message out of a mess.  If you are not seeing God’s goodness, then you may be too focused on the storm because His mighty deeds are right in front of you. There are treasures in darkness and riches in secret places for you at this time. (See Isaiah 45:3).   Even as I am writing this post, my internet has given out.  By all indications, it should be working.  As I go to my offline Bible to verify the verse I am writing, this pops up as the verse of the day - When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul.  Psalm 94:19 NASB.   I do admit to having a bit of anxiety at the thought of losing internet since it is my primary connection to the world as I am at home like many people who are trying to be socially responsible, practicing social distancing by not going out to socialize in order to decrease the rapid spread of the coronavirus.  Yet, even in my anxious thoughts God has comforted me with the fact that I have electricity, so I can continue writing and not lose my train of thought.  I recognize I need to focus on what He is doing right now and what He is speaking to my heart.  So, losing internet at the moment is a good thing, because it offers another training ground for God to teach me to rely on Him and look to Him alone in moments of doubt, fear and anxiety. 

The internet is now back up, and the craziest thing is that WhatsApp was working, but I couldn’t get on to any other website or app on my phone or computer.  I got a call from a friend on on the app, so I spent most of the time writing this post or talking while the internet was down.  God cares about the littlest detail, therefore He even gave me activities to keep me occupied when I couldn’t get fully online.  We don’t want to miss that He is giving us a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. Isaiah 61: 3 NIV

With so much time being spent at home, it is a period to build broken families, to rest in Christ so He can restore our hearts, and to strengthen our relationship with Him.  God wants to fill us up with Himself, but in order to do this we can’t be full of ourselves.  We need to get rid of our hurts, fears, anger, pride, unforgiveness, and all that would block us from being filled up and running over with His Spirit and love. 

Let us take this time to reflect on the goodness of God, in spite of all that is going on around us and to give Him thanks in this storm, while not taking our eyes off Him and His amazing deeds.  I pray that if you cannot find the blessings by yourself, that God will send persons to you to help you see your blessings, so you can do as the song says and count your blessings to see what the Lord has done. As a result, you will definitely want to give Him thanks in this storm.