It is no secret that we as a nation have been under a “shelter-in-place” order until just recently.  Everyone approached it differently, from anger to annoyance to inconvenience. Some (like me) who are basically retired homebodies, it was not such a big deal. It gave me time to get a lot of home projects done, books to read, and some much needed emotional and mental downtime.

  The hardest adjustment during these past weeks was the fact that we had no church meeting in our buildings. We did have online services as most churches did, and I “went” each week. I also enjoyed being able to visit other churches that I had always wanted to go to. Not for the purpose of comparison, but just to see different styles of worship, different messages, and (to be honest) to get ideas for our church when we come back together again.

  Being honest, though, I’ve experienced a lot more of God by not having to physically go to church every week. It has been very relaxing to calm my life down and allow myself to be able to feel God moving in a personal way. When I felt a little overwhelmed, God was there calming me down. When I worried about me or my family friends about getting sick, God was already there calming my fears. And those worries were frequent and usually after I turned the lights out at night. God walked with me during those times and gave me the words to pray. Usually, I would just lie in bed and say “The Lord’s Prayer” since that was the prayer Jesus gave us. And it was good.

  In the Bible, you may know the story of the prophet, Elijah, doing battle with the prophets of Baal (a god that the local people worshipped, but was not Jehovah God). The God of Elijah won over the prophets of Baal and the Queen Jezebel promised to kill Elijah, so he went and found a mountain cave in which to hide. As he was in the cave, a mighty wind came up and knocked rocks from the mountain; an earthquake shook the mountain; a firestorm came upon the land; and then, silence. Pure silence. And in that silence, Elijah heard the voice of God instructing him on what to do. If you want to read the whole story, read I Kings 19:11-13.

  The verse in Psalm 46:10 also comes to my mind; “Be still and know that I am God.”

  I have had many storms in my life. Some big, some small, but the storms kept me from hearing God. You may have experienced the same situations. But, when the storms quieten down, God is there. I can imagine that God has used this pandemic to calm my life down so I could hear what I need to hear.

  “Be stronger in your faith, Jimmy.”  “Share more of your life experiences, my boy.” “People are hurting emotionally and physically. Do something, Jimmy.”  “I gave you a gift for music and it blesses people to hear you play and sing. Go and Do.”  “You are a good speaker for ME. Take and make more opportunities, Jimmy.”

  Wow, this is only the beginning of my lessons during the Sheltering. What have you learned and heard?  Have you used any time to renew your relationship with God? My heart rate and blood pressure are lower now than they were 8 weeks ago. How about yours?

  I would encourage you to take the time to be still, know God, share Him with others before the chaos of our world begins again.

  And for today my friends, this has been the gospel according to Jimmy.