Hope When the World Shut Down
by
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Introduction
These are unusual times. A few short months ago, we went to work, visited family, ate dinner at our favorite restaurants, and went to church. We took these things for granted. The pages that follow are filled with stories of lives changed by an unexpected adversary.
You will see that some quarantine experiences are shared by many, but others are deeply personal. We often hesitate to reveal our private heartaches and fears. Even as Christian believers, we often stay in our social circles, having polite conversations, never knowing what others, including friends and family, may be going through.
This pandemic has changed our lives. Many have suffered loss: the loss of loved ones, the loss of jobs, and the loss of the warmth and comfort of family and friends. We miss our children, grandchildren, coworkers, and church families. I found these stories meaningful because of the insights I was able to gain from people I have never met. Their ability to find the good in difficult situations has shown me that we share more in common than we have differences.
I want to thank our contributors for opening up about your struggles and joys in these unusual, unsettling times. My prayer is that you will find meaning and be inspired by these stories, as I have been.
- Vicki Gollihue
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WHERE DOES YOUR STRENGTH LIE?
As I wheeled a cart full of books, whiteboards, and markers out to my car, my mind swarmed with ideas. I was determined to turn my daily lessons and time spent with my students into an enriching remote learning experience. My type A, planner-self went into overdrive creating video recordings and Google documents.
I kept hearing people complain of boredom while binging on TV shows. I struggled with quite the opposite. My already busy life had just become more chaotic. No more alone time during my thirty-minute drive to and from school. No more separation of “teacher hat” and “mom hat.” I now simultaneously held Zoom calls with my students, while getting blasted with nerf bullets by my sons.
This quarantine brought me to my knees in a new way. I needed God’s peace and strength now more than ever. How could teaching my own sons possibly be harder than teaching twenty-two children? I began to doubt my abilities and my calling to be a teacher. Slowly I let the voice of the enemy creep into my mind.
After a particularly rough day, I began to intentionally look for the lesson He was teaching me. God so graciously reminded me that He uses our struggles to refine us and edify others. Maybe God is allowing this struggle so that I can, in turn, extend grace to my students and their parents. It is likely that they are trying to juggle helping their child and doing their own work from home, just like me.
God has reminded me that I cannot teach at home in my own strength. It is by His power that I can carry out the task before me. In the miracle told in John 6:1-15, Jesus fed 5,000 people after a little boy offered all that he had, and his gift was multiplied! I need to offer my gift of teaching to God, for Him to multiply His anointing in my life.
Lord, help me to keep my eyes on You—and not the storm—as I continue to navigate through this new season. Amen.
“‘ . . . Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.”—Zechariah 4:6 NIV
Elizabeth Jackson, Medford Lakes, NJ, USA
Teacher and mother of two
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Extra Buffalo Sauce
At last, the moment I had been anticipating had arrived. I was excited. I was eager. I was hungry. It was time to unwrap and eat the sandwich that I had just brought home. This sandwich, with each ingredient carefully selected for the ultimate sandwich experience always causes me to do a little happy dance when I sit down to eat it. Yes, really. I carefully pulled the tape on the wrapper, moving the order slip showing each ingredient I had ordered, and to my surprise and great disappointment, revealed a sandwich far from the one I had ordered. It was dripping with buffalo sauce, which is far from being on my list of carefully selected ingredients. My next thought was one of sadness, knowing that the person who ordered this sandwich might experience the same disappointment receiving my perfect sandwich. Maybe the garlic aioli that I like, triggers the same response in them that the buffalo sauce did in me.
I considered the situation the world is in right now - one of disappointment and inconvenience to say the least, but also one of fear, death, destruction, and great loss. My sandwich struggles began to lose their significance. Paul, a great disciple of Jesus, experienced almost every kind of pain imaginable, and still said “… I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.” Philippians 4:11 ESV. Surely if Paul faced shipwreck, persecution, and beatings and still remained content, then I have no reason not to be content in every circumstance, even when I unwrap a sandwich that isn’t the one I ordered. My thoughts then turned to gratitude to be able to purchase a warm, healthy sandwich, and eat it in my safe home with my loving husband. Suddenly, that extra buffalo sauce wasn’t so bad.
“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.” Philippians 4:11-12 ESV
Jen Whylings, Bethlehem, PA, USA
Wife, paralegal, and sandwich enthusiast
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Book Details
About the Book
Like a cool drink on a summer day, “Hope When the World Shut Down” offers an oasis of hope from a world that often leaves us parched and exhausted.
A compilation of short stories from believers in all walks of life, these snapshots, written during the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic, will leave you laughing and crying as you read how ordinary people held onto God’s promises.
You’ll be sure to identify with these easy-to-read stories by doctors, educators, students, ministers, homemakers and grandparents, packed with uplifting Scripture. Whether reading it as a daily devotional or all in one sitting, you will come away refreshed, feeling like you just spent an evening with an old friend.
About the Author
Bonnie R. Pearson has a heart for people and ministry. She is a gifted speaker and uses the creative arts to share the love of the Lord through concerts and recording. Bonnie is co-director of EHAD Ministries and a vocalist in the music group, EHAD. The author of two children’s books, she has written and directed many plays and musicals. A mother of four and “Nonna” to four grandsons, she resides in Erial, New Jersey with her husband, Dan.
Vicki Gollihue has a passion for telling stories through song and the spoken word. Her background in ministry and music has given her the heart to encourage and uplift. She is a concert vocalist and voice teacher with a gift for, and great love for, teaching her students. She also enjoys her work as a freelance copy editor. A mother of four and grandmother of three, Vicki and her husband, Keith, live in Erial, New Jersey.