Shelter in Place
Ok, ok - so how are you doing?
Yeah, I get that.
Here in San Francisco, we're on our 5th day "in captivity" (I mean, shelter[ing] in place) and for me and I am guessing others, it continues to be surreal. I can confess to: not wearing real pants in over 72 hours, having a short attention span, checking the news WAY too often while I am trying to work, experiencing waves of anxiety and waves of peace (sometimes multiple of each within the same hour), experiencing a short temper and lots of patience (also within the same hour), and yes, since I have been trying to focus on staying inside and only going outside to go for walks within the radius of my apartment, I have also been checking out pics like these to see how the rest of the city has been impacted.
Thanks also to my One Year Chronological Bible (yes, I am mentioning it again!) I have so far spent the month of March in Numbers and Deuteronomy. For those that have not spent a ton of time in the Bible, Deuteronomy is a remarkable combination of the final sermons Moses gave to the next generation of folks on the threshold of entering into the promised land. Notice I did not say "set of instructions for how to enjoy the peaceful prosperity of arriving in a peaceful, conflict-free, perfect existence devoid of effort or struggling of any kind".
"It'll be bumpy, it'll be weird. Fasten your seatbelts, this will be the ride." Jason Clarke
In times of change, especially in an organization, I often find myself returning to this amazing talk from TEDxPerth posted almost 10 years ago (although truth be told, I would probably benefit from listening to it say, quarterly. It's THAT GOOD.). One of my favorite realizations is actually the most simple one: that there is choice in everything, even when you aren't allowed to touch other people you don't already live with. If you make it to the end of the talk, you will see a beautiful outline where you can list the ways change impacts you and where the agency is:
Things you could do before and still can do:
Things you couldn't do before and still can't do:
Things you could do before but now you can't do:
Things you couldn't do before but now you can do:
Ok so as Jason says, the first 2 are status quo, the 3rd one is where we need to let go, and the 4th is where the opportunity is. For me: I can still eat lunch [virtually] with my parents in Phoenix, read the Bible, praise my God, and [virtually] listen to and be challenged by needed messages our pastors deliver to our church. And yes, now I can enjoy this new opportunity to go for long walks with my dog in the late afternoon before the sun sets because I am cutting out all of my commute time and have greater control over my schedule. Now I can see my colleagues during meetings because even the staunchest opponents are getting over the fear of being on camera. Now I am making better meals for myself because I can take my time and use a ton of fresh food (and in a fit of preparing for the worst, I bought a ton of food - again, not proud of all my reactions in this time). The point is that there is opportunity here, even when it feels constrained and perhaps the greatest opportunity is to do something we have always been able to do: shelter in place.
"Perhaps you will think to yourselves, 'How can we ever conquer these nations that are so much more powerful than we are?'" Deuteronomy 7:17 NLT
Moses was preparing the Israelites for the fight in front of them, explaining several choices that they would need to make throughout the book of Deuteronomy. In chapter 7, he specifically included the requirement of conquering the sinful nations already inhabiting the land that was promised to them and letting the Israelites know that that they would need to destroy them completely (in the interest of not making this post obscenely long, I'll commit to a completely separate blog post on the need to battle our sin completely vs trying to control or limit our sin). I am certain that there were those among them (perhaps even the majority) that experience fear and doubt, which are natural human reactions when faced with something so much bigger than ourselves. As you navigate a season (the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the long walk toward buying a home, repairing a relationship, trying to give up alcohol, or the often overlooked reality once you have successfully been freed from alcohol for even a few months) it is important to realize 1) yes, we will have to fight and 2) to succeed, we must focus on is that which does not change: God.
Look, I get it. I didn't ever believe that I could be free of alcohol...especially after 15 years of trying, wandering aimlessly through my own wilderness. And sure, I would even put on a brave face, like when I started my outpatient program a few years ago, hoping that maybe it would be different. But when I was home, alone, at night, thinking to myself, the unbelief crept in. And guess what: God gets it too. In fact, verse one explicitly says that these nations are "greater and more numerous than you" - it's clear that we cannot win in our own strength!! But these "nations" are not bigger than God. Neither is addiction. Neither is COVID-19.
"Rejoice, my people! There is a better way; it doesn't have to be this way!" Jason Clark (and Moses) (and Jesus)
What is the better way? Read on to one of my all-time favorite scriptures:
"Remember how the Lord your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands. Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord." Deuteronomy 8:2-3 NLT
Step 1: REMEMBER
When in doubt or fear or disbelief, stop your reptilian brain and remember God's goodness and faithfulness. Did you notice how verse 3 does not start with "Remember how the Lord, other people's God led them through the wilderness..."? That is because the God Moses is talking about is YOUR God. And if you are older than the age of 12, he has already led you through many seasons of wilderness! When is the last time you have remembered all of the ways that God has held you in times of struggle? (Also it is not lost on me that they wandered for forty years and I just turned forty - and got sober - last year.) Remember too, the "manna" that God provided - the job, the house, the spouse, the medication, the peace that was previously unknown to you. How many times has God surprised you with just enough (or perhaps even abundantly?) for your need? Looking back at your path to today, where can you see that it was God all along and not you?
Step 2: BE TEACHABLE
Being humble is so hard - and it's not a new thing we can blame entirely on social media (but I think we can all agree the humble brag is anything but). Moses is reminding us that God brought these people to a place where they had to depend on him, where they would need to reach the end of themselves. Could that be what God is doing now? Is God giving us an opportunity to reach the end of ourselves so that we can prove our character? David Guzik makes this important distinction in this commentary: "God tested Israel. It was not because He didn’t know their hearts, but because they didn’t know their hearts. We have to constantly be corrected of our over-estimation of ourselves." Today consider some of the ways we over-estimate ourselves.
Step 3: LEARN AND LIVE
In this time of stock-piling toilet paper and bottled water, there is a feeling of scarcity, like all we can do is focus on how we can protect ourselves and cling to survival. But God doesn't want us to eek out a life and successfully exist, he wants us to live, and live abundantly (John 10:10b). So how can we go about living abundantly? Feed on God's word. And I mean all the time. More if you are starting to feel anxious. There are SO many verses where we can be reminded of how important this is; here are just a few:
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:4 NIV
It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. John 6:63 NIV
Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. Psalm 119:105 NIV
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever. Isaiah 40:8 NIV
For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. Proverbs 2:6 NIV
As you continue to navigate whatever season you are in, remember God's faithfulness, position yourself in a way to learn from whatever God is telling you right now, and double down on reading God's word. As quoted in David Guzik's commentary, Charles Spurgeon reminds us of how important each word is.
“In places where they cut diamonds, they sweep up the dust, because the very dust of diamonds is valuable; and in the Word of God, all the truth is so precious that the very tiniest truth, if there be such a thing, is still diamond dust, and is unspeakably precious.”
Be well. And shelter in place by seeking the protection and peace of God, our one true comfort.