Daily Devotion

by Lena Schwarz 

Proverbs 3:5-6:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

The days have gone by, the weeks, the months, and now it’s a year.  I can’t imagine that anyone can say that their life hasn’t changed in any way, shape, or form, since the pandemic emerged.  In the beginning, I personally thought, that it won’t make much of a day-to-day difference for me.  I’m used to this, I’m experienced in being at home, having our loved ones – and even my husband much of the time - far away, not being able to see them in person whenever we wish to.

I remember an 8 year-old girl once asked me when I was back in Sweden; What do you do for a living?  I replied, I am a stay-at- home mom.  She paused for a moment, being used to everyone in Sweden having a job outside of the home, then looked at me with a puzzled look and said; OK, but what do you REALLY do for a living?  I recall smiling and thinking - what do I do that makes a difference.   I now have a clearer answer, as I reflect upon the new norm of living.

I realized, while my days are filled with running errands, volunteering, seeing friends to catch up for a coffee, and enjoying cultural events, what I do is engage with others.  It’s not about me, but it’s brightening up others’ day, others’ lives.  And from the pandemic, I’ve come to understand why human contact is so important to us all, and how we often took it for granted.  We all need a sense of belonging, a sense of being needed. 

However, that doesn’t mean that we can’t still be part of what we did or what we were involved in previously.  It might just be a matter of being creative, open to change.  And, actually more than ever, we see how we can be a light to others in the simplest ways.  By reaching out and giving someone an unexpected call, sending a text or an e-mail, sharing a smile through a letter or card by good-old “snail-mail”, lending a hand to a neighbor by running an errand, or just sharing advice or comfort – whatever it might be. 

This is how I see God speaking to us in a time of difficulty.  I hear the Lord say, “Raise up, let the unending love I give you reflect on others by what you say, do and show.”  God walks besides us every moment, is in every breath we take, and his unending love never stops, even when we do not find answers, or understand why, how, or when.  Acceptance of not being in control, but leaving it to the Father, our Lord, has taught me how to have more patience, forgive more easily, and love even more.  

2 comments on article "Daily Devotion"

Kathy

Thank you for this devotional! So well said!

3/19/2021 10:46 AM

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Danelle Buelsing

Lena, this is lovely. Those little ways of connecting can add so much joy!

3/22/2021 11:38 PM

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