Control Relinquished

Many of us are in week three of our quarantine to stop the spread of COVID-19. If you're like me, you have processed and prayed a lot in these last three weeks. Life has a new, disjointed feeling. For instance, it took me five stinkin' hours to vacuum my house today. On a day I have the house to myself, that was a task that simply took 30-40 minutes. But under our new circumstances, I had to help multiple children with schoolwork. And then I had to be sensitive to the phone calls and video chats of my children with their teachers and my husband with his job. Before I knew it, I had to prepare lunch...and the disjointed schedule just continued!! The ebb and flow of the stream of normal life feels like it has completely disappeared. In fact, much like this stream I recently encountered on a walk: In one moment the stream is trickling along and the next moment it's completely gone. It leaves a dry and exposed creek bed. My father-in-law has lived most of his life

We are currently two weeks into the new year of 2020! New years can bring differing emotions: excitement, expectation, and passion to fulfill new goals and experiences. But it can also bring feelings of fear, worry, and overwhelmedness at the unknowns that lie ahead. There has been a situation in my own life that has felt burdensome over the past week. I've covered it in much prayer, trusting in God's faithfulness. But God kind of felt silent; I knew He was hearing my prayers but I wasn't seeing any amazing breakthroughs. Doubts and lies began to creep in about His goodness and I felt tempted to "fix" the problem by my own power. Then on Monday night, I experienced God in a way I haven't in years. He clearly spoke to me through a dream and vision in my sleep! In my vision, I found myself with the Israelites escaping the bondage of Egypt. We came to the Red Sea and only saw the sea of impossibility. We were being pursued from behind and felt trapped becaus