As the months have passed, I've branched out a bit and started using it for other things as well. I use it to study for school, to take notes (pretty hard to type my notes like I used to when class is now on my computer), and recently, I also began to use it to make lists of things. I had an idea to make a sort of "Book of Lists", but no extra book, and I figured I might as well use this one, since I had so many notebooks going already. So I began to make lists, and to add to them here and there...there are many different topics, such as:
Funny Things the Kids Say
Books Read in 2020
Days of Lockdown
People I Meet (All Souls Matter)
Ways to Encourage Others With Words
Things I Want to Do When Lockdown Ends
Things to Do During Lockdown
Ways to Help People See Truth
Ways Others Have Encouraged Me
Ways to Show Love to Others
Self-Controlled Habits to Build (this one is very short because it was quickly overwhelming...)
Things I Know That Are True (even in situation X)
Why am I doing it? Because I want to record things...want to think about them more...because lists are fun! As a side benefit, these lists can hopefully spawn a blog post here or there. In this blog post, I thought you might like to know some of the things I'm learning during lockdown - specifically, from the list I wrote around April/May during the more intense stages.
Lessons from Lockdown (Part 1)
- Jesus is my best friend - even when I don't recognize it or feel it or acknowledge it.
- He KNOWS. He knows what I am feeling and exactly how it hurts. He knows because He was tempted and can sympathize with my weaknesses.
- He CARES. No one loves me more than Christ. No one is more patient with me. No one else has more compassion.
- He INITIATES. I don't have to make the first move (in fact, I made a lot of anti-moves) and wonder if I'm really more into this friendship than He is. That would be impossible. If anyone is committed to this thing, it's Him.
- He is ALWAYS there. He's never too tired or busy or emotionally drained. His ears always hear my cry. He's never too far away or locked down or inaccessible because I'm at work or something.
- He has POWER to help. No matter how much others care, they can't change my circumstances or work in my heart. They can't take away my guilt or change my sinful habits or heal my pain.
- He SATISFIES. No friendship, no matter how close and loving and beautiful, can bring that closure to my soul, that feeling of "this is finally enough." If I look for satisfaction there, love will only turn to poison. If I look to Christ, those relationships will grow. He is the only one who is enough for me. Trying to fill that need with friends is like throwing them into a black hole.
- God is sovereign even when my world is collapsing. Not one atom is out of His control. He is on His throne, sitting down, not running around in a panic.
- He is also WISE. This all doesn't make sense to me. It's a good thing He tells me not to trust my own understanding. I can't see the big picture.
- He is also GOOD. He does what is best, And "what is best" is not just for the general good but for MY good! God has designed it so that my good is inseparably linked with His glory. This is because I am united to Christ! (This also means that He shares my suffering.)
- I need to trust God with strength for today. He isn't going to help me live tomorrow, today.
- I have significantly underrated what it means for God to be with us - if I ever understood or thought about it at all. Right now I just have this craving to be WITH people. That's not wrong. But that desire to be with someone will ultimately be fulfilled in Christ's presence in heaven. And I don't even fully get that or realize that's what I'm craving, because I've never experienced His presence, and sin is marring my view of Him. And God is coming down to be WITH us! (Me, yes, but us, because we experience it together!) Christ has permanently taken on flesh...He is not "with us" but unapproachable. God is moving in with us!
Part 2 coming soon!
