When What's Around You Reveals What's Within You. (COVID-19 Personal Reflections)
Image credit: Tai-s-captures. (subsplash.com)
Even though most of us are tired of hearing about COVID-19 (coronavirus) it’s important for us to learn from what is happening around us and inside of us.
Never in my lifetime have I ever witnessed such a global “pump-the-brakes” moment before.
It’s one thing for a disruptive trial or event to shut down a state, region, nation or possibly hemisphere-but never have we seen the global community impacted so widespread, so vastly and so quickly.
Some of us have the tendency to push faster and harder when we feel pressure.
There is a time for that for sure.
However, I do not think this is that time.
In times like this, I think it is wise to pause.
Everyone is having a personal “smelling salt” offered to them; a personal wake-up call of sorts.
“In moments of this global pandemic is it smart to for each of us to gain personal perspective.”
My friend, Mike Kim, said it so well in his post Coronapocalypse:
“There is no life balance. Navigating life is more like a symphony; paying the appropriate attention, to the appropriate thing, for the appropriate amount of time.”
All of us are trying to regain a sense of normalcy.
Our life-rhythm has been thrown WAY off.
Our familiar targets have been chucked into an upheaval.
So many of us have misplaced energy running wild in our minds and bodies.
“What do you do when your external rhythm is thrown off and it’s putting extraordinary pressure on your internal stability?”
We all react differently.
It’s good to know if you are naturally an over-reactor or an under-reactor to situations that feel much larger than you.
I know, I know...we all think we react appropriately, but the truth is that we naturally tend towards one side of the spectrum over the other.
I’m naturally an under-reactor.
I try not to be dismissive, but I have a tendency to down-play things.
I’m sure it’s a defense mechanism of some kind. However, it’s good for me to know this about myself.
Some of you are more prone to worry and over-reacting or what you would call “realism”. :)
With this self-awareness I am able to surround myself with people who I think may be over-reactors to help balance me out.
Like a tube of toothpaste that’s squeezed, once external pressure is applied, what’s inside of us comes out.
“We are all being confronted on this outside with what has been previously packed on the inside of us.”
The HOARDING mindset.
You don’t have to have piles of trash building up around your house to have an issue with hoarding.
Even if you weren’t tempted to fight someone’s grandma in Target for the precious last roll of TP they just put in their cart; you still may have an underlining struggle with hoarding.
“Hoarding can be any kind of excessive clutching to yourself things you need to be willing let go.”
I was hoarding control of my daily routine when COVID-19 first became serious in our region.
I was confronted with my selfishness when I planned on going to the gym before they all shutdown.
I didn’t think I was infected, but it wasn’t until Anna said to me, “Don’t go to the gym, workout at home. What if you get sick or cause someone else to get sick?”
I was more worried about keeping up my routine than prioritizing someone else’s health.
I wanted to check off the box of “got the work out down” more than I was concerned about the chance of spreading a potentially deadly virus.
I was willing to jeopardize someone else’s health and possibly their life, with my “hoarding” mindset.
“It can seem subtle, but when you see it for what it is, it’s pretty scary.”
That was an ugly wake up call.
I don’t want to operate with a hoarding or scarcity mindset-on ANY level.
Recently, successful business friend of mine called me.
He was trying not to panic over the catastrophic loss of his retirement funds in our recent stock market plummet.
I listened to him share and process.
“People can’t hear until they’ve been heard.”
People can’t hear the hope you want to offer them until you first hear the anxiety that’s already within them.
I’ve really had to learn this lesson...
“It’s important to humanize things BEFORE we spiritualize them. Really stop to feel it before you start to target faith at it.”
He shared how he wished he was more generous and philanthropic during his season of bounty.
He also resolved not to wait until he regained it all back before he did something generous.
He was going to start now.
Small things.
Support local businesses to help keep them afloat.
Think about how this pandemic is impacting others more than himself.
Things he could do even while trapped at his house.
He was being changed for the better.
He was being confronted by what was already in him because of the pressure around him.
The truth remains, we all react differently.
The HELPING mindset.
When a crisis hits, that is when some people have a “GO” switch that is activated!
These people are beautiful to watch.
They creatively find ways to put the needs of others ahead of their own worries.
I’m in awe and grateful for people wired this way.
Our church (FREEDOM CHURCH) has an outreach landing page where people can post needs and others can offer help.
We’re collaborating with other churches from all over the country to discover ways to serve people in this new reality we find ourselves in.
It’s simple, but it’s something.
We are praying for a cure for the coronavirus but we’re not waiting for one before we do something.
It’s frustrating how limited we feel in the ways we can serve those around us.
“How do you effectively touch lives when you have to practice social distancing?”
Everyone feels the same tension but let the tension lead to intension.
“Serving the critical needs of others has an incredible way of leveling and right-sizing our own crisis.”
Churches ALL OVER THE PLANET are embracing the truth that though our buildings are closed, the CHURCH is still OPEN!
So powerful.
So beautiful.
So needed.
The old adage is true, “Do what you can, where you are, with what you have.”
The HUMOR mindset.
793 people dying in one day in Italy is no laughing matter.
I may be a natural under-reactor in times of trouble but this virus is a global crisis and health pandemic.
It certainly no joking matter.
Why then would some of us be willing to share hilarious memes with our friends?
Our Creator wired us to benefit from healthy humor. Laughter is good medicine for our souls and our bodies.
Even in times of calamity I think you a need a little comedic relief in your life.
These hilariously creative people are creating memes to help soften the mood in our homes.
They are creatives and have a need to CREATE.
They are not insensitive to plight.
They are not bad people.
They are like the character in a movie who knows how to say something funny at the most tense moment, like a release valve breaking down the pressure a little bit.
It is not that they don’t care about a family who just lost a loved one.
They are being who they are.
What’s inside of them is being squeezed out by the pressure around them.
It’s interesting to see in times of great stress how people become a magnified version of their normal, day-to-day personality.
For better or for worse.
“In times of crisis, it seems as if people become a double portion of who they normally are.”
Any of these mindsets can be “x-factored” when the pressure on the outside is extreme enough.
It may be that under stress we all go to our lanes of competency and double-down.
It may be that we are so used to using our most powerful tools and gifts that we immediately reach for what is familiar and effective.
I don’t pretend to have the answers.
I’m personally still asking lots of questions.
I still think it’s good to laugh.
Sometimes when the pressure is all-on, people need a temporary release valve.
The HOPE mindset.
“Leaders must first choose their DISPOSITION before modeling their position.” -Kevin Myers
This is where I naturally live.
I honestly live most days with faith-based optimism. Please don’t try to rehabilitate me, I’m happy this way! LOL.
I’m the kind of person who is not worried if the cup is half-full or half-empty; I’m convinced to my core that the cup is refillable!
I know God’s wired me with the spiritual gift of faith.
But I also know that sometimes my perspective can appear more flippant than faith-filled if I don’t first acknowledge current realities.
How do you give hope to people in the midst of a crisis and not have it sound like a cheesy Hallmark card?
It’s important to not have our head-in-the-sand to the true tragedy happening all over the planet.
Handing out superficial hope can seem offensive to those who are truly suffering or to those who are suffocating in “what if” anxiety.
“Feelings are raw when times are uncertain.”
Loved ones are dying.
People are panicking.
Economies are tanking.
Parties are politicizing.
Thankfully, this too shall pass.
But this IS for now our current reality.
As a person who normally loves to motivate and inspire people with hope, I picked up a massive learning from Carey Neuiwhof- What a brilliant leader!
Carey mentioned how in times of crisis, leaders can’t just reach for their go-to-tool of motivation.
Motivating people to read their Bibles, take initiative with their health goals or prioritize their marriage is much different than trying to encourage someone to survive a pandemic.
“People tend to struggle in receiving our hope if we don’t also acknowledge the hard facts. Inspiration without information is like feeding people straw instead of real substance.”
People need two vital ingredients added to our motivation: information and translation.
Information.
“What is really going on?”
“Where can I go to find out the facts?”
“Which voices can I trust?”
“Which metrics are real?”
Translation.
“In light of the best facts we can find, what do we do?”
“In light of what I know about God, the world and myself, what should I be asking?”
“How can I stay safe and engage in solutions?”
“How can I be productive and still be present for my own family?”
“Motivation without informed translation can erode credibility.”
Whether you are well or feel like you are circling the drain and going down, my prayer is that you would not just survive this trial but that it would serve you.
God didn’t cause it, but He will certainly use it.
“I believe God is not only able to meet our needs but is also desiring to reveal to us His nature.”
And until then, be kind to yourself.
Slow down.
Serve others.
Laugh.
Pray.
Be informed.
Give wise translation to those you influence.
Be present.
Ask for forgiveness.
Don’t strive too quickly to get back to “normal”.
Embrace the new “symphony” that is playing out. Gain fresh perspective. Choose greater priorities.
And then we’ll all have to trust God to more than make up the difference.
I’m pretty sure all of us could use some help THINKING NEW THOUGHTS in the midst of this trial and moving forward.
Image credit: Luke Tharp