how the light gets in

Tag: coronavirus

• News Flash

  Posted at 3:18 pm by How the Light Gets In, on October 18, 2020

  The pandemic we are suffering from is not a virus in need of a vaccine.

  The widespread disease covering our country is isolation; symptoms include loneliness, fatigue and anger.

  We are triggered.

  And the upcoming Presidential election is pouring fear on thick and cold.

  I’m over it. Aren’t you? I refuse to accept this as the “new normal.” We were NOT made to be hunched over our devices “connecting” or worse, hitting like or send on divisive ideologies pushing us further and further apart.

  Ugh.

  So, I’ve pulled together some reminders of who I am, who you are, who we are meant to be and who God is to put my heart in check.

  Tell me what you think. PLEASE, add to the list.

  I am a person of integrity, character and honesty. 

  I will love the Lord my God with all my heart, with all my mind, with all my soul and with all my strength.

  I will put on the full armor of God so that I can stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 

  I am the head, I am not the tail. I am above, I am not beneath. 

  I am a leader. I am not a follower. I will have the praises of God in my mouth continually.

  I will be a blessing to my teachers today.

  And I will be a blessing to my friends.

  -Priscilla Shirer prays this blessing over her boys.

  “I AM one in whom Christ delights and dwells.

  I live in the strong and unshakeable kingdom of God.

  The kingdom is not in trouble and neither AM I.” 

  James Bryan Smith

  the kingdom is greater than the nation …We should be lukewarm partisans at best because we are such passionate kingdom-minded people.

  Lecrae on Annie F. Downs “That Sounds Fun” Podcast: Episode 252

  “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, ²¹ that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²² The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, ²³ I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.

  Jesus’ words from the Gospel of John 17:20-23

  Print this out. Cut it up and tape it where you can see it. Remind yourself of who you are, whose you are and the job before us all.

  Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments | Tagged Annie F Downs, coronavirus, Election, How the Light Gets In, James Bryan Smith, John 17:20-23, Lecrae, Pandemic, priscilla shirer

• Follow/Unfollow

  Posted at 3:54 pm by How the Light Gets In, on April 25, 2020

  Here’s an activity from the first graders homework this week:

  

  We were hunting through the house to make a list of anything we could find with the /or/ sound. It didn’t take very long to make the list.

  What catches me by surprise though is how the lesson stuck.

  At the end of the day, Bean just kept following the lesson, adding more and more words to the list.

  Let’s follow this another direction, shall we? We’re taking a sharp turn from 1st grade phonics to your heart.

  What are you following these days? Now that we’re all under “stay at home” orders with virtual learning throwing us into a literal tailspin. What and who are you following?

  I ask because this pandemic – whether it’s the stillness and quiet, the uncertainty, the anxiety, the loss and loneliness – it’s going to push you to self-soothe. So what are you looking for to ease the pain, to pass the time?

  I ask because of these words…

  Above all, guard the affections of your heart, for they affect all that you are.

  Proverbs 4:23 TPT

  God’s words always lead back to Him. They’re powerful that way. He is powerful that way.

  The problem is I don’t always follow.

  I do follow a lot of people and apps and videos. All those voices can end up pushing God out of the way.

  But, the practice of reading His word and looking for it, always leads me back to Him.

  This week COVID-19 hit my family with some significant loss (let’s leave it at that) and I was heartbroken. We went for a walk. I got a good cry in.

  And then, I sat down on my phone and scrolling through account after account, double tapping mindlessly through my grief. It did nothing.

  Annoyed with myself, I went to wash the dishes.

  Right in front of me, in a tiny clay pot, was this:

  

  As soon as I spotted that itty bitty heart pushing up through the dirt, it reminded me of a God who sees me and loves me.

  Did God bend that sprout into a heart shape just for me? I like to think so.

  Guard the affections of your heart because they affect all that you are. There’s power in the choices you get to make, the accounts you follow. Choose wisely. I am not saying they all need to be Jesus accounts but are they making you laugh, building you up, teaching you something, encouraging you, leading you to a better you?

  You – YOU – open the door from the inside. You decide who and what comes in.

  Guard your precious heart.

  Posted in APRIL 2020, Uncategorized | 2 Comments | Tagged coronavirus, Follow, Heart, How the Light Gets In, Phonics, Proverbs 4:23

• The Blursday Blues

  Posted at 7:20 am by How the Light Gets In, on April 7, 2020

  I just don’t know what day it is anymore.

  Every morning, Jason says, “This is just like Groundhogs Day.” Every morning. It will happen today. I can guarantee it. As he’s pouring his coffee into my favorite mug, he’ll shake his head side to side and say, “This is just like Groundhogs Day.”

  What fun things do you look forward to every day?

  When the people ask me what’s for dinner; I simply don’t know anymore. The “this is fun and different, don’t worry everything is fine” phase is uhhh over.

  I’m pouting and putting ear plugs on my shopping list because I wake up to the same bird singing it’s deet-deet-deeeeet song at 4:58 every morning to start the same “This is just like Groundhogs Day” day over again.

  Oh no wait, this week is different because the 3 younger ones start virtual learning.

  It’s hard work being a human being right now. I don’t know what day it is. God gave me a lot of gifts but teaching is not one of them.

  There are 7 humans plus a dog in this house, all the time. We’re all processing different losses at different times and grieving them very differently. That being said, last week was especially hard because the senior may actually not get a prom, the middle can’t be with her besties, the youngest loved her first Zoom call playdate but ached for her buddy, Jason was restricted to emergency patients only and I was sick.

  My doctor prescribed Doxycycline and I was taking Gabapentin for my pain. Not only was I hurting and sick but getting so ticked off because usually (a word that feels heavy with golden predictability) USUALLY when I hurt, when I want peace, when I want to recharge; I go sit by the water. I love hearing it. I love feeing small near it. But the POLICE DO NOT CROSS yellow tape across each and every entry point to water was enough to break me.

  

  AND THIS IS HOW GOD SHOWED UP ON A BLURSDAY:

  Jenna and I were dm’ing on Instagram and I was telling her how sad I was about the water.

  

  Here’s the video she sent. Listen carefully.

  I never realized that before. Had you? God’s voice is the same in the water and in the wind. That’s the thing about God; always the same.

  Do you read the “Streams in the Desert” devotional? If not, now is a good time to start. It’s a deep one but we’re living in a trench-like world where stats of life and death blur with images of masked faces and loneliness is a thick blanket on us all. Hold on, I need to take a deep breath.

  Okay, so the “Streams in the Desert” reading for April 4 reads:

  Once our eyes are opened by God, we will see all the events of our lives, whether great or small, joyful or sad, as a “chariot” for our souls. Everything that comes to us becomes a chariot the moment we treat it as such. On the other hand, even the smallest trial may become an object crushing everything in its path into misery and despair if we allow it. The difference then becomes a choice we make.

  “Streams in the Desert” Hannah Whitall Smith p.142

  The scripture offered at the top of the reading is from 2 Kings 6:17

  

  This “chariot” over instagram with Jenna reinforces to me that God is still here. God is still good. God is still showing up. God is still super creative in trying to get my attention.

  Knowing that God is real and good and steady and true; that helps me. Does it help you?

  It’s Blursday friends. Here we go again. The coffee is brewed and about to be poured, the laptops are charged for another virtual learning session and today I’m going to keep my eyes open. I pray you keep your eyes open too and can hear/see/believe/know God is here for you whatever day it is.

  Posted in APRIL 2020 | 0 Comments | Tagged 2 Kings 6:17, Blursday Blues, coronavirus, Groundhogs Day, How the Light Gets In, Streams in the Desert

• Compass + ?

  Posted at 8:08 pm by How the Light Gets In, on March 22, 2020

  The Compass post needed a follow up.

  I hope you know enough about me that I didn’t want my words in that post to come across as quaint or self-assured. You know me. I’m sorry if they did. The thing is, YES, God has always been a part of my life. And, YES, I do believe that reading the Bible and praying are the spiritual COMPASS leading me through the wilderness of my life.

  BUT

  Even though I have the relationship with God to guide me; I can get wigged out when life gets crazy. I know and love and trust God but will white-knuckle the compass WHILE trying to follow the lead.

  And that’s ok.

  Here’s the other thing. I’m able to hold the metaphorical compass, to look to it, to trust it because of another survival tool – COMMUNITY.

  I have an army. I don’t know why or how or why but I have an army. They are beasts. You are beasts. You all are warriors. You relentless, beautiful, faithful, loving, honest people. Without you, I wouldn’t be who I am or where I am. You, in all the ways, show me how much God loves me. I hope to do the same for you.

  COMPASS + COMMUNITY

  This Corona “wilderness” is unexpected, unprecedented and unnerving. Now’s the time to rely on our survival tools.

  Look for God. Ask God to be your Compass. You ask. He will show. That is just how He rolls. Seek Him with your whole heart and you’ll find Him (Jeremiah 29:13).

  Ask God for good people to build up your circle. Pray to be a “beast” in your community. You probably already are.

  The Coronavirus is giving us all a freaky unique situation where we’re all brought to the same level, same speed, same time.

  We will make it out together.

  Now is the time to find your Compass – God’s just waiting for you.

  Now is the time to find your Community – You are loved and so needed.

  Posted in March 2020 | 0 Comments | Tagged Community, Compass, coronavirus, How the Light Gets In, Jeremiah 29:3

• Compass in the Chaos

  Posted at 4:18 pm by How the Light Gets In, on March 19, 2020

  Where the heck are we right now? What is going on?

  I feel a little lost in all the Coronavirus updates and state mandated restrictions and empty grocery shelves. It’s all so disorienting.

  How are you?

  Since you can’t be student, boss, employee, non-teacher, hostess, room-parent, coach… how are you?

  It’s weird and slow. 

  I know. I feel it too. Right now, I want to sit next to you (virtually) and offer you a compass in the chaos.

  Because I’ve been here before.

  From 2016-2019, we were swirling in a medical mess and I felt lost in a sort of wilderness. Just like you now, I wasn’t able to be all the things I’d signed up for like coach, room mom, hostess, tennis player, volunteer, etc.

  My calendar was wiped clean of every layer of identity I’d wrapped myself up in. They were all taken without asking my permission. 

  As you read this; COVID-19 has wiped your calendar clean. And you didn’t get a say. We’re back to basics with no clear path of what lies ahead. So, what next?

  First, let’s get our bearings. Friends, we are IN the wilderness.

  And, I can tell you from experience and from reading lots of scripture, the wilderness is where God does His thing.

  This is where He works.

  Behold, I am doing a new thing;
  now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
  I will make a way in the wilderness
  and rivers in the desert. – Isaiah 43:19

  

  Rachel Held Evans wrote “…some of Scripture’s most momentous events occur not at the start of a journey, nor at the destination, but in between, in the wilderness.” Inspired: Slaying Giants, Walking on Water and Loving the Bible Again

  We are IN BETWEEN right now.

  And God is in it with us offering “a way.” In all this uncertainty and pandemonium, why not, WHY NOT invite God into it and ask for direction.

  How does this work in real life, like right now? Well, if you were lost in the literal wilderness; you would keep your eyes open for signs to point you in the right direction. Same applies to you and God in the metaphorical wilderness. Really.

  Here are a few “signs” in the wilderness to point you in the right direction: Read the Jesus Calling Devotional, sign up for a reading plan on the Holy Bible App, follow Aussie Dave or Priscilla Shirer or Bianca Olthoff or Bishop Jakes on Instagram, listen to 95.1 Shine-FM, look up She Reads Truth and join the community, tune in to mass on Church of the Nativity’s website.

  We’re feeling a little lost right now but we have a God who loves to show up IN the wilderness in remarkable ways. He’s full of promise and hope and relief.

  Point the compass His way, ask Him for help and TAKE NOTES! {You might not be able to see God in the moment but being able to look back at what you asked for can be a powerful way to see He was working all along.}

  Just yesterday, I was journaling about my worry with the news of even more closings and my anxiety over my daily routine being swallowed up with the needs of all the kids home now. The “Jesus Calling “reading for March 18 was from Matthew.

  “Refuse to worry about tomorrow, but deal with each challenge that comes your way, one day at a time. Tomorrow will take care of itself.” – Matt 6:34

  I’ve seen it before. I know I’ll see it again and again. You might be lost but you are not alone.

  Let God be your compass in the chaos.

  Posted in March 2020, Uncategorized | 1 Comment | Tagged 95.1 Shine FM, aussiedave, Bianca Olthoff, Church of the Nativity, compass in the chaos, coronavirus, covid-19, Holy Bible App, How the Light Gets In, Isaiah 43:18-19, Jesus Calling, Matthew 6:34, priscilla shirer, Rachel Held Evans, She Reads Truth, Wilderness

• Ground Beef Heart & TACOS

  Posted at 10:35 am by How the Light Gets In, on March 22, 2019

  Yikes. Nice title, right? You know me well enough by now to know this will all make sense. Promise.

  When anxiety strikes, what part of your body does it hit? We all experience anxiety differently – maybe it’s migraines, an upset stomach – for me, anxiety gives me what I call Ground Beef Heart. Yes, it feels as yucky as it sounds.

  Worry and doubt can grind up my peaceful heart until it feels raw. Those vivid “worst case scenarios” our brains are so good at launch themselves on my heart and stick. When my heart is not strong, the “what if’s” settle into the mush.

  You get the picture. Now, here’s where TACOS come in. TACOS, while a great food, is an even better acronym for how to pray. Here it is:

  T A C O S

  T-Thanks. Start by giving thanks for the people around you, the food you’re about to eat, the day you had. Step one is saying thank you.

  A-Adoration. Think of words you would use to describe God and tell Him. Here are some ideas; awesome, good, sweet, faithful, loyal, steady.

  C-Confession. This is where you check your heart and share with God where you may have messed up or gone wrong.

  O-Oration. Pray for someone who needs it. Pray for a situation that you can’t heal or help.

  S-Silence. Shhhhhh… time to be quiet now. Take a deep breath in and listen. Give it a minute. Just shhhhhh.

  To review: Ground Beef Heart can be remedied through TACOS. Haha, imagine if we just left it there.

  Pretty much all of life’s big and small moments are made better with TACOS (to be fair, that’s true for actual tacos and the prayer structure).

  Now for a little throwback to Moses, made real for you and me now…

  “No one (no thought, no worry, no doubt) will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, SO I WILL BE WITH YOU. I will never leave or forsake you. Be strong and courageous.”

  Joshua 1:5-6

  Thank you God for the Ground Beef Heart that brought me to this moment.

  Awesome and patient and steady and faithful are just some of the words I know to be true of you.

  Checking my heart reveals that it feels like ground beef because I don’t have control of everything and I don’t like that. Help me with that issue please.

  Oh, I pray for anyone reading this that they may see YOU in my anxiety and immaturity and awkward faithfulness.

  Sitting now in quiet and listening for your word God.

  Amen.

  Posted in MARCH 2019, Uncategorized | 1 Comment | Tagged Anxiety, coronavirus, Ground Beef Heart, How the Light Gets In, Joshua 1:5-6, TACOS