Sheltered at Home Church

Because our kids are all with their other parents this coming weekend (an odd sentence that only blended families have reason to use), we had our "Easter" yesterday. The kids had baskets full of candy to find. We had ham and company potatoes for dinner after church.

Church. Or what is now church.

Everything is new in this quarantined, virus-plagued world. We've been doing church online for several Sundays now. We've got two different churches between us (and multiple service choices between those two). We've been donig a pre-recorded video (I know some do a facebook live type event), and trying to gather the family together at a certain time. We still try to sing the hymns, say the prayers, and take some sermon notes. This past Sunday my church had recommended people have bread and juice/wine on hand to do communion. That helped make it feel a little more church like.

Jesus said that where two or three are gathered in His name, there His amongst them. But what if two or three can't gather together? In our case, we're lucky because of the size of our household. But a family does not make a church. A community makes a church. Yet in our online world, two or three can gather though oceans apart.

I'd like to say I'm deepening my spiritual disciplines during this time. Partly, it's hard to find quiet space while being sheltered at home with five other people. Partly, I haven't done any major attempts at it (which is the real reason nothing has happened). With all the changes, it's sometimes hard enough just to live life without getting swept away in the confustion of it all. Which probably gives all the more reason to give more focus to my relationship with God right now.

So let's do it. I guess in the midst of Covid 19, there are questions. Where is God in all this? Why is He letting this happen? Is there a bigger purpose--some "good" thing that is to come out of this? How do I love my neighbor during this? How do I love myself? What about my fears of not having an income for a while? How do I raise my children up right during this? What will our new normal be?

I don't have the answers. I know God is present and that He cares. I know because He's proven that when I've gone through tough stuff in life before. IJ know He wants to hear these things from me. That I need to tell Him. I also know He has things He wants me to hear from Him--things like I am loved, that I am not in control, and that He can be trusted.

And thankfully I am not in this alone. We're in this together, and many people are providing great resources (worship videos, uplifting messages, ideas for families, etc.).

The mantra that has followed me from different places in life (working at Bible camp in Iowa, worshipping at church in Minnesota, serving in Ecuador, and other places in between) has been:

God is good. All the time.
And all the time, God is good.

Even in the midst of chaos, there is goodness to be found. Like under those decaying leaves from last fall where the flowers are starting to poke up through the ground. Or from the children down the street who write encouraging messages with sidewalk chalk on their driveway. Or in taking communion together as a family at home.