There is a lot of noise right now. I definitely don’t want to add to that.
However, there have been a few voices that have managed to cut through the chatter and speak things worthy of our fierce attention. My prayer is that these encourage you as much as they have me.
I’ve hesitated to share because—here’s the thing—we are all coming at this from a multitude of different luxuries, economic situations, responsibilities, and personal losses; so none of this experience is universal. But I’m realizing there is one thing that unites all of us, we all need a hope beyond our circumstances.
So that’s what most of this is devoted to, with a few little fun things as well. If you are feeling overwhelmed by input, don’t feel the need to read on. But if you, like me, are longing for some perspective, these are for you.
This Prayer by Doug McKelvey: I stumbled across this prayer early on in my quarantine and keep coming back to it. I love this line:
“…When the cacophony of universal distress unsettles us, remind us that we are but small and finite creatures, never designed to carry the vast abstractions of great burdens, for our arms are too short and our strength too small. Justice and mercy, healing and redemption, are your great labors…”
This Podcast: I’ve been listening to this podcast for a while now. David Platt simply picks a Bible verse and prays through it. Lately he’s been praying through the Book of Psalms, specifically praying over various aspects of this pandemic. It’s helped provide me with a language for my prayer life and informed me on specific things to be praying for.
This Poem: Blase gives needed perspective in the haze of everything vying for our attention.
This Book: I am so grateful this was written. Piper gives a clear and biblical perspective that cuts through all the noise and speaks from the wisdom of Scripture. I love what Piper says early on in this book: “scarcely a page in the Bible is irrelevant for this crisis.” And bonus: the ebook and audiobook are free.
This Podcast Episode (For the Schooling From Home Parent): There have been a million resources thrown at parents on how to school from home well. I don’t know about you, but while many of them have been helpful, I’ve also caught myself feeling so overwhelmed by the breadth of endless possibilities and lack of vision. This podcast lays out a few basic foundations for schooling-from-home parents. Ruth and Troy have been homeschooling for years and share both how the Bible bears weight on how we view our child’s education and some honest reflections on how they implement grace while they educate. (Also, this entire podcast has been super helpful for us. Chris and I are starting to set aside one night a week to date night in while we listen to each episode, and then we discuss).
Also, I made a playlist, Songs for Weary Hearts, for you guys if you’re interested.
And now for something a bit lighthearted:
This past year, a lot of my creative energy has been poured out over the stove, learning new genres of food and practicing basic techniques in cooking. When the first week of quarantine hit and there were scarcely any basics on the shelves, I figured my joy in cooking would need to take a back seat for a while, but to my surprise it’s become my favorite creative endeavor yet. I loved this quote in a new book I’m reading,
“in a period of abundance any half-wit with a spoon can please a palate. To truly test a chef’s ingenuity, one must instead look to a period of want.”
With that said here are a few voices in cooking that I’m grateful for right now:
This podcast, by one of my favorite cookbook authors, is completely devoted to assisting the home cook during quarantine.
These two Instagram profiles: Ina Garten and Chef Dev are both devoting time to teaching people how to cook from home, specifically with foods that are somewhat easy to come by.
Also, I will never stop singing Sarah Forte’s praises. I belong to her Sprouted Kitchen Cooking Club and she’s sending recipes once a week that are approachable but still challenging. Since you have more time at home, this might be a good time to experiment a bit. Last night I made her Coconut Crusted Chicken Sliders with Avocado Crema…So dang good!
Anyways, I hope these voices bring you each the encouragement they have brought me. Here’s my prayer for each of you: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope” (Romans 15:13).
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