Tag: Quarantine

Hold’er Newt!

by Dale, posted in Christian Living, Eternity, Gods' Will, Prayer, Rest, Uncategorized

My father had many “dad” sayings that have lived on through me. One that came to my mind just this morning was, “Hold’er Newt! She’s a headin’ for the pea patch!” What in the world?????

Well, he would use that statement to describe an action that needed to be slowed down, stopped or taken with caution.

Yesterday, the governor of our great state of Tennessee, Governor Bill Lee, announced that he would not extend the “safer-at-home” orders beyond April 30 and would begin to reopen the state. At that moment, I could hear car engines fire up, restaurants buzzing with weight-gained, post-quarantined shoppers, stimulus checks zeroed out in three debit card swipes at reopened stores, and a state of basic euphoria!!

Okay, Dad! Say it! “Hold’er Newt! She’s a headin’ for the pea patch!” I share in that excitement, but is being set free from quarantine and your life returning to what you call “normal” really what you want? Is it best?

First of all, it all begins with our heart. Proverbs 4:23 says, Guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it flows the issues of life. The heart here is not the physical organ within your chest, but it describes the inward core of every person. This is “Central Command.” This is NASA’s “Houston.” In other words, it is the headquarters of your feelings, thoughts, actions, and choices. For instance, Jesus said as recorded in Matthew 15:17-19, Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. And in Luke 6:45, A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil [i]treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. And we must be reminded of the words of Jeremiah, The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart,
I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings (17:9-10).

Has this time of quarantine prepared your heart for greater contentment? Has the Word of God been tucked away in your heart during these six or more weeks of shut-down? Is your heart right with God? 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).

Second, have you gained a greater desire for prayer and communion with the Lord during these days such that instead of jumping right back into life the way it used to be, you will find yourself seeking the Lord before any decision or action? Will you and your family be praying more about these days ahead? Now set your mind and heart to seek the Lord your God (1 Chronicles 22:19). May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ (2 Thessalonians 3:5).

Thirdly, will you live a life of rush, rush, rush again (“crazy busy”) or have you planned into your weekly routine times of rest and refreshment? Proverbs 21:5 says, The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. Have you thought through the biblical priorities of life? What is Christ in you saying about your next step today or next week? Note the words of Christ as recorded in John 4:34, Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Proverbs 16:3,9 has great counsel for us. Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established. The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps. Remember, every time you say “no” to a non-essential or lesser priority issue, it allows you to say “yes” to something more important. You see, there is eternal, godly ministry that the Lord would have you to participate in that might have been pushed away due to being too busy and too tired. You have a clean whiteboard today. Choose prayerfully and in a God-honoring way (Matthew 6:33;1 Corinthians 10:31).

I write this today to remind myself and you, when we roll back into “regular life,” let’s not forget that a sovereign God permitted this COVID-19 for many, many reasons. As I said in an earlier post, let’s don’t miss it.

So, okay, Dad! Here you go, “Hold’er Newt! She’s a headin’ for the pea patch!”

How You Doing?

by Dale, posted in Christmas, Church, Fear, Trials, Uncategorized
(Slate.com)

As a pastor, as well as for our church congregation, yesterday was a very different day. But then again, it has been a very different two plus weeks!

We were travelling along, for the most part, doing just fine. Our economy was on an upswing. Students were preparing for their final semester and graduation. Many of us were already in the countdown mode for our beach vacation.

Restaurants were booming. Retail stores seemed to be profiting. And, we were going to church . . . just like we always do.

Have you heard the screeching of the brakes? Basically, life has been put on hold. So much of what we would consider the ingredients of life has been removed from us, closed down, quarantined, or reduced.

May I ask, “How are you doing?” We are going into week two of the various levels of virus response in our area. Yesterday, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee enacted an executive order for statewide closures due to COVID-19. Again, may I ask, “How you doing?”

Are you missing your “normal” life? No sports, no Friday night restaurant trips, no TJMaxx, and no Sunday gatherings. (It seemed so strange to walk into the waiting area of my eye doctor last week to find only three chairs located a 100 miles from each other!!!)

Bottom line is, we have been really good at cramming our 24 hours-a-day with the stuff of life. I am not minimizing the severe threat of the coronavirus, but I must say that it has also caused many of our idols to come crashing down in front of us. So very much of our life has been characterized by being “crazy busy” with a truck-load of temporal things.

Friends, life is not found in the abundance of things or activities or recreation or even people. Everything and everyone around us, as far as this time on earth is concerned, is temporal. We can do all within our power to keep things propped up, running smooth, and filling our lives with what we think really satisfies. All it takes is for a virus or a tornado or some other tragedy to wipe it all out; to remove it from our grasp.

Here’s the true bottom line: Who is Jesus to you? Life is not things. Life is a Person (John 14:6). The Lord Jesus Christ came to save you from your greatest crisis which is your total inability to save yourself from an eternity in hell (John 3:16-18; Ephesians 2:1-10). But He did more than that. He came to give you Himself, the only way back into a right relationship with God and the assurance of an eternity in Heaven. For more information, click on this link and watch the four YouTube videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsP-etMyUZk

Indeed, God has abundantly, mercifully and graciously given us so much to enjoy here on earth, but if they were all taken away from us, would Jesus be enough? When things get back to “normal,” remember the only true normal is Jesus Christ, first in all things (Matthew 6:24-33; Colossians 1:15-18; 1 Corinthians 10:31). Christ is the issue in all of life!

How you doing? Would you pray for me, too, that I’ll keep my eyes and heart fixed on Christ?

Quarantined

by Dale, posted in Christian Living, Fear, Hope, Prayer, Trials, Uncategorized

A few weeks ago, the word “quarantine” was not a frequently used term in our every day vocabulary. Now it is a repeated visitor in our minds and speech along with the terms social distancing, pandemic, fear, worry, panic, cancelled, closed and isolation in light of the spreading coronavirus.

Merriam-Webster defines quarantine as “a restraint upon the activities or communication of persons . . . designed to prevent the spread of disease; a place of isolation; to isolate from normal relations or communication.”

Someone might say, “What’s the difference between isolation and quarantine?” While isolation serves the same purpose as quarantine, it’s reserved for those who are already sick. It keeps infected people away from healthy people to prevent the sickness from spreading. (clevelandclinic.org/covid-19)

President Trump has outlined a 15-day plan to slow the spread of the virus. The CDC is keeping us informed in real time. This virus has and is changing our world.

There is another “quarantine” of which every believer should be most familiar. This quarantine is the number one way to effectively deal with the virus. fear, panic, worry, as well as the moment-by-moment effects and news of this pandemic.

That quarantine is your “secret place,” the place where you get alone with God to pray. The place where you “restrain upon the activities or communication of persons,” and you share your heart with God and you listen to God. (Prayer is not a one-way communication.)

That “secret place” is where you “prevent the spread of disease” of worry, fear, doubt, anxiety, dread, panic, and stress.

Listen to these words from Psalm 91:1-6

1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”

3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the [a]fowler
And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and [b]buckler.
5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

Where is your quarantined, secret place? Perhaps it is kneeling beside your bed in the middle of the night or when you arise each morning. Maybe it’s a special place in your den, living room, back porch, office, or outdoors.

For the Lord Jesus Christ, that secret place was a mountain (Matthew 14:23; Mark 6:46) or a secluded place (Mark 1:35) or a garden (Matthew 26:36) to name a few.

My friend, to have the eternal perspective on this virus, to have a peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:6-8), to have wisdom from above (James 1:5), to have a genuine place of refuge (Psalm 91:4), to experience God’s mercy and grace (Hebrews 4:14-16), you must spend time quarantined in the secret place.

We don’t relish being quarantined or isolated in our American way of life. But there is a “quarantine” that you will never regret, and you will long for as the days go by.

I’ll see you at the Throne of Grace!