It
amazes me now how a Friday at home use to mean an extended
weekend due to a special occasion of some sort for myself or the family. A Friday at school was always our work hard,
play hard day (Yay Fun Friday). But now,
Friday has lost its oomph and pull as the most popular day of the workweek
since many of us don’t have a normal work week anymore.
COVID-19
pandemic has turned the field of education on a topsy-turvy spin like no
other. Shut down districts have been thrust into distant-learning
teaching and learning practices. This shift has had a varied effect on
educators and schools as it pertains to, meeting student's physical and social
needs and of course the availability of technological learning opportunities in
rural, urban and suburban communities.
To be
honest, some teachers are working harder than before as they strain to make
sure their students are still progressing. My husband, who teaches on both the
high school and college-level puts in a full day holding Zoom meetings, sending
emails, making calls, grading papers, and creating and uploading
assignments. On the flip side, some teachers, myself included, can only do so much as
they are limited by a lack of internet access for all of their
students.
To be
even more transparent, some educators needed this time away. For them, it
truly has been a rough year and they wished every day were the last day. One
thing we all had in common prior to this, however, was that our workloads only increased and
the sacrifices of time and money to make a difference was the expected norm.
But that the time we sacrificed often came at a price, especially if you had a family
at home. It is difficult to give your all to your family, your job, and
yourself. Our days would start early and end late as we sped out the
house, put on the six million hats we're required to wear at work, then head
off to practice, church, civic group, a second job, or to help our kids with
homework, prepare dinner, finish up school work, and then get ready to start it
all over again for the next day. Burning the candle at both ends never
has a happy ending. Somebody or something always pays the price.
When
I look back over the twenty-three years I've been in the classroom, I can see
those years where my marriage suffered, my parenting suffered, I suffered, and
my teaching suffered because I had too much on my plate or just didn't have my
priorities in check. Therefore, right now, I am so thankful for this time I have
at home.
I did
not always feel this way. Due to some heath issues earlier this school year, I was
“sheltered in place" and unemployed. It was no one's fault. It was unexpected
and I had no idea what the future held for me. I had boo coo time on my hands and the house pretty
much to myself until my family returned at the end of the day. I couldn't really go anywhere because my
health would not allow it. I didn’t like the uncertainty and helplessness
I felt.
Now, with this pandemic, the only thing that's different is that my family and I are together. It's yet another
unexpected shut down for me that is no one’s fault. I still can't really do much of anything (because
everything is closed), and I again have a share fair of spare time on our
hands. I feel like I'm in some sort of perpetual Spring Break
Groundhog's Day kinda life. Oh, I’m not
complaining. I’m just keenly aware that
sometimes I need more time and a do-over to get things right. Sometimes these do-overs are just for me, and
sometimes God takes me through things twice so that I can confidently walk with
others pointing out the potholes and paths for them NOT to take.
Today,
God gave me some nuggets of wisdom to share with you since I ate up the chicken
kind. You see, God’s in the business of
giving things to us that we know nothing about. He
knows that our end result will be fullness in Him and expects us to share our experiences
with others. The time He gave me, you now have. The lessons I learned and are still evolving in, you now have the opportunity to grow in them too.
Now I
don’t want you to think I’m making lite of the effects of this pandemic on
anyone. It is stressful to not know how bills are going to be paid or how
groceries are going to be bought. I understand. It's a kick to your pride
when you have to tell your kids no to things you've always said yes to. Been
there. Calls have to be made to cancel subscriptions and future plans are
scratched as you now eyeball things to see if you could get one more use from
what was easily wasted before. Did that. I understand educators who may
feel like the field is changing too fast for them to keep up and they feel
outdated and just plain tired and unsure about going back to work when this is
all over. I know. But I held His hand and came out...better.
It's all because God gave me these nuggets:
Questioning
Reflecting
Crying
Repenting
Repeating
I
also do not want to assume that this pandemic is stressing you out. As I
said before, some educators welcome this time. They are having the time of their life. My health issue led me
out of what I know was going to be the most challenging school year of my
life. My first time at home sitting at home was not all full of despair. Even with all of its uncertainties, it was a blessing. I am a better person for it. My family is better for it.
And yet even in those days of peace, God still wanted me to partake of these nuggets:
And yet even in those days of peace, God still wanted me to partake of these nuggets:
Questioning
Reflecting
Crying
Repenting
and Repeating
As a
Christian, our first and foremost devotion is to God and let's face it,
sometimes we put everything else in front of Him because...well, He's not going
anywhere. He'll be there and He'll forgive us. While that may be true,
living our lives without our Sovereign God at the helm has its consequences!
Everything about us will be less than what He desired and
designed. So no matter how you feel about being home right now, God has a
plan for you to be a better person, a better spouse, a better parent, a better teacher, a better
member of your congregation, a better whatever He needs you to be when
this is all over.
Don’t
forget to click on the hyperlinks. That’s
where I hid the dipping sauce.
Nugget
#1: Question
In
prayer, ask Him questions.
Does
my life please You? Does my marriage
please you? Does my parenting please you?
Why did my school year go the way it did? Does my attitude please You?
Do my thoughts please You? Am I attending church for the right reason? What's going to happen next? Why is all this happening? What's Your part in all of this? What's my part in all of this?
Then
be prepared to receive answers as you slowly digest another nugget.
Nugget
#2: Reflection
In
meditation, read the bible and listen for His voice.
You
have the time, now make it a point to read His word every day. Need a starting point? Choose a good bible
app, I use YouVersion.
Start one of their daily plans. They have tons of them (with reminders!) that
can guide you through the Word of God for any area of life. There are
also many websites that provide bible studies with videos and study guides. Check out Biblestudytools.com and utilize Right Now Media’s free COVID-19 sign up period. As you read, listen for God's voice. He
is always speaking to us in one way or another even when we feel like He’s
silent.
Nugget
#3 Cry
I put
this in here because it is necessary. We are human and we feel emotions. I cried a lot during my time of reflection
and meditation. I cried a lot afterward. I cried angry tears and scared tears. I cried apologetic tears and thankful
tears. When truths began to be unearthed,
whether they are good or bad, your emotions may just spill over into your eyes.
Tears are refreshing and help to remove layers so that God can get to work.
Nugget
#4: Repent
Jesus spoke with His disciples prior to His
crucifixion about the coming of His Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is
available to teach us, comfort us and counsel us. [John
14: 16-18, 25-27
and 16:5-15]
and God’s
word, when it is read with the purpose of understanding His ways, will do
just what it promises as it instructs, convict, corrects and trains us. Self-reflection through God’s word should always lead us to an acknowledgment that
our ways, actions, thoughts, and words are not up to God’s standards. The Holy Spirit will point this out to us.
True repentance not only acknowledges your faults, but apologizes for them and does an “about-face” turn. The Holy Spirit helps us to make that turn because we can't truly change without God's divine assistance. True repentance also realizes that forgiveness is necessary, only comes from a loving and holy God and is complete. Jesus removes our sins from us as far as the east is from the west. His forgiveness is final. Hallelujah!
True repentance not only acknowledges your faults, but apologizes for them and does an “about-face” turn. The Holy Spirit helps us to make that turn because we can't truly change without God's divine assistance. True repentance also realizes that forgiveness is necessary, only comes from a loving and holy God and is complete. Jesus removes our sins from us as far as the east is from the west. His forgiveness is final. Hallelujah!
Nugget
#5 Repeat
Well,
you prayed, learned something about yourself, cried about it, repented and
probably cried some more. It just starts
over, like a never-ending bowl of pasta.
Oh wow, what if Chick-Fil-A had never-ending nugget bowls?! I
digress…
Our walk
with God is a never-ending progression towards becoming more like Jesus. There is always room for improvement and God
is always working on us, in us and through us.
As
you take your nugget bowl up for another five-piece refill, ask another question.
Reflect on your life through His word as you look for the answer. Be
honest with yourself as God pulls back areas of your life that expose a need to
improve or a reason to rejoice and cry out to Him. Repent of
doing things your way and repeat the process all over again.
When this season is over, there will arise a group of people who are refined and ready. It will be because they took advantage of this time to actively press towards God. They will look different. They will sound different. They will live different. Will you be one of them?
The
Lord is with you and you are loved,
Toni
Image nuggets of wisdom source: http://www.savedhealed.com/nuggets.htm
