My Pandemic Lesson

Whether the end of the pandemic is in sight or we have more to go, now seems like a good time to look back over the past year. What’s it been like for you? Here’s part of my list:

• More meeting, coaching, encouraging, listening by Zoom and by phone
• More walks and more praying for neighbors (but still not knowing all their names)
• More reading/studying/writing, less teaching
• More cooking at home, less sharing meals with others

In other words, not all good, not all bad. But definitely more tiring, more stressful, and more disorientating.

One lesson I have learned: Jesus cares. I know this sounds cliche, but I’ve been reading slowly through the Gospels, and over and over again Jesus says, “How can I help? What can I do for you? Of course I want to help.” Though I might want God to “just fix everything,” more often, what He wants is for me to come to Him, cry in His arms, and trust that it will be OK. It’s a basic message, but in times like these, it is the message I keep needing to hear.

Next Steps

Because you care, here are some things you might want to pray about (for yourself and others):

• That those without jobs would find good work.
• That those who are working would find good rest.
• That those who have transitioned smoothly would find deeper peace (“smoothly” does not mean without challenges!)
• That each of us would be fruitful in the fields God has called us to (work, our neighborhood, city, nation, and world)

Dean Storelli

Dean teaches writing at Duke University and works part-time for the Navigators. You can find his blog at human365. Hobbies include biking and the mobile game BattleNations, which he rarely does at the same time.

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