Persevere! What story would you like to be able to tell going forward?

How to Persevere All the Way Through the Pandemic: Are We There Yet?

Posted on by Michele Morin

COVID-19 has initiated the celebration of some very unique milestones. For me, the most memorable was the day I sat between two of my grandchildren and read them a story for the first time since we began sheltering at home. We celebrated the relaxation of strict quarantine here in rural Maine with our little group of eight. As everyone feasted on pizza and whoopie pies, I prayed that I would never forget the joy of this reunion. And I began praying for grace to persevere.

A lot of ink has been spilled over the purposes of God in this season of world-wide pandemic. Deep roots in Scripture affirm God’s sovereignty and goodness, even in this, but what of God’s enemy, Satan? Certainly, the ravages of COVID-19 have been a source of great delight and entertainment to our ancient foe. Like many evangelicals, I look to C.S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters for perspective on the motives and machinations of evil. Lewis’s fictional correspondence between a senior devil and his nephew apprentice was set against a backdrop of World War II-era London, but Screwtape’s strategies are clearly unchanged.

Jim Elliot practiced a strong resolve I want to borrow in 2021: “Wherever you are, be all there! Live to the hilt every situation you believe to be the will of God.”

I’m arguing today for a posture of resilience and resistance to the negative messages that keep us in petulant, “Are We There Yet” mode. Since our timeline and ultimately our rescue from this enemy virus are truly in the hands of God, we can stay in the moment. Join me over at The Redbud Post where I’m grateful to be adding to a collection of essays focused on Good Out of the Pandemic.

What happens when a short sprint culture runs smack dab into a pandemic marathon? Click on over and join the conversation!

Redbud Writers Guild

How has this huge social and cultural shift changed you and your family?
Have you reached out to God for rescue, resilience, and resistance?

I look forward to hearing from you either here or there!

Holding you in the light,

Michele

Screwtape’s strategies are unchanged: “The game is to have them all running about with fire extinguishers whenever there is a flood, and all crowding to that side of the boat which is already nearly gunwale under.”

On the Third Thursday of every month, I send biblical encouragement and newsy insights to newsletter subscribers. You can sign up using the handy (and only slightly annoying) pop-up form or simply click here to subscribe.

And as always, you can also subscribe to Living Our Days blog to get regular content delivered to your inbox twice a week. Just enter your e-mail address in the field at the top of this page. If you’re encouraged by what you read here, be sure to spread the word!

What I’m Reading Now

Just Finished

What’s Next?

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees. If you should decide to purchase any of the books I’ve shared, simply click on the image, and you’ll be taken directly to Amazon. If you decide to buy, I’ll make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Photo by Anshu A on Unsplash

Published by Michele Morin

Michele Morin is a Bible teacher, writer, reader, and gardener committed to the truth that women can become confident Christ-followers and students of God's Word. She has been married to an unreasonably patient husband for thirty-plus years, and together they have four sons, four daughters-in-love, and five adorable grandchildren. Michele loves hot tea and well-crafted sentences, poems that stop her in her tracks, and days at the ocean with the whole family. She laments biblical illiteracy and advocates for the prudent use of “little minutes.” She blogs at Living Our Days, and you can connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

66 thoughts on “How to Persevere All the Way Through the Pandemic: Are We There Yet?”

  3. Michele, love this post! What precious memories with your grandchildren. I was encouraged by this quote from Cecil Murphey, writer:
    “The late Henry Nouwen wrote that when we give from the right motives and it’s received gratefully, we’re also the receivers. It was only a paragraph in one of his books, but it has stayed with me and I’ve reflected on it. I feel blessed that I can encourage others. For God-followers, I assume that’s a natural response. Frankly, for me, it simply feels good to help others…It’s also enabled me to understand the words of Jesus quoted by Paul in Acts 20:35: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” For years, that statement didn’t mean anything. Now I know what’s in it for me when I serve or help. I feel God’s favor when I give to others; when they show their gratitude, I’m greatly encouraged. For me, giving is a double blessing. I give and I also receive.”

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Wonderful post, Michele! This is wisdom >>> “Let’s not allow the goodness of healing and health and increased freedom to become a launch pad for evil” . May we persevere a little but more!

    Like

  6. Michele,
    Many have weathered the pandemic differently and i am very happy to say that my little family of 5 has not been all that affected by it. Since we live within 5 minutes of each other, we have been able to celebrate Holidays the same way we always did, none of us, thankfully, got ill, only my oldest son lost his job but it was not co vid related but because of a company take over that was several years in the making and not unexpected. I have enjoyed my time at home as i retired right before the pandemic hit so I was totally thrilled with being home and accomplished a lot of things that i wanted to do….i do pray every day, thanking God for seeing our family through this time with very little disruption….
    Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by and by letting me know that you did by leaving such a sweet comment!!
    Stay safe, healthy and happy!!
    Hugs,
    Deb

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Thanks for sharing this perspective Michele. I was thinking today that the year would have passed one way or another without the pandemic. How many of us might have had even worse experiences, if not last year then eventually another. I hope we all learned we’re a little more resilient than we knew we could be.

    Like

  11. I’m trying hard to practice resilience and resistance, but find myself growing weary. I’m not petulant, just profoundly sad. I haven’t seen my granddaughters in over a year, and they are affected as well. I believe in God’s timing with all my heart, and my prayer time helps me stay in the moment. It’s just becoming increasingly difficult…

    Like

    1. AnnMarie, I hear your brave heart shining through the sadness, and honestly, I believe God mourns with us as we celebrate his goodness while acknowledging the reasons for lament.

      Like

  12. Lucky for me, one of my daughters facetimed me everyday during the lockdown, so that her new baby could get used to my voice and so that I could watch her growing. I am so grateful for this.

    Like

  13. You are so right! We are a short-sprint culture that has run into a marathon pandemic and I appreciate your encouragement to persevere. And being from Maine, your choice of pizza and whoopie pies for a celebration!

    Like

  14. I have always seen this pandemic as the beginning of the end and never looked at it as something that would be over in a certain time period and things would return to normal. I believe we’re living the end of the age and I’m just waiting for Jesus to return at this point.

    Like

  16. I keep seeing a slogan top based on Back to the Future that says whatever you do Marty, don’t go back to 2020. I may well get it as my year was so very bumpy. It will be good if we see positive legacies personally and world wide from the many challenges of 2020 and early 2021. #MischiefandMemories

    Like

  17. This pandemic has been a blessing to me, this past year. I was able to spend a lot of time at home and enjoyed this time with my family. While Covid did finally make its way into our household over Christmas, we did weather the storm and all came out of it well. Thanks for linking up.

    Like

  20. Dear Michele, thank for taking on a hard topic. Honestly, the pandemic came on the heels of retiring, downsizing, and moving, so in many ways it provided me with much needed respite. It also gave me joy to see how people chose to cling to each other in creative ways. Sadly, it has brought tears to know some who have chosen to use “social-distancing” as a tool to cut themselves off with fellowship. But, in all things, as you gently reminded us, our Lord is sovereign. Blessings and thanks as we continue to learn new ways to serve and savor in these times!

    Like

  27. Glad you have been able to have a precious reunion with your grandchildren, we still have restrictions here and my parents are craving visits from children and grandchildren, and to see their first great-grandchild in person. Hopefully not too much longer for us, take care. Thanks for sharing with #PoCoLo

    Liked by 1 person

  29. Michele, thank you so much for this timely reminder. I have been struggling big time with the negative thoughts and feelings during this pandemic. I have all but given up hope that l can return to living again. But I won’t give it up completely and I am very grateful for these eye opening posts and gentle reminders to keep me afloat! Thank you for sharing and linking with me.

    Shelbee
    http://www.shelbeeontheedge.com

    Liked by 1 person

  30. Thank you for sharing at #OverTheMoon. We appreciate your shares. They have been Tweeted Pinned. Have a lovely week. I hope to see you at next week’s party too! Please stay safe and healthy. Come party with us at Over The Moon! Catapult your content Over The Moon! @marilyn_lesniak @EclecticRedBarn

    Liked by 2 people

  32. I can only imagine how hard it’s been on many people, especially those prone to depression. I have been very blessed to never have had to wear a mask and very few time to ‘socially distance’. I do pray for those who are having a hard time.

    Your link is a welcome addition to My Corner of the World’ this week!

    Like

  33. The last year has been tough but so many other nations and peoples have it much harder than we do. I am thankful that we have had each other, that we have the technology to speak to loved ones and that we have remained safe. Thanks for linking up with #MischiefAndMemories

    Like

  34. You always have a way of bringing me back to the fact that we still have so much to be thankful for and that God is in control. I want to thank you for sharing with us at Farm Fresh Tuesdays Blog Hop and for being a faithful part of Little Frugal Homestead. I truly appreciate you and all that you do.
    Your post is one of my features at this week’s FFT Blog Hop, see you there!
    Melissa | Little Frugal Homestead

    Like

  36. Michele, I rejoice with you as you were able to be with your two grandchildren, and I agree with your prayer, “I pray that I will never forget the joy of this reunion.”

    Like

  37. I love Jim Elliot’s quote. That is fine. “…be all there….” Like I stood at the window off and on all morning earlier this week watching the snow fall from the sky! Will I ever outgrow this delight? I think NOT!!!! I read “Aging with Grace” with a friend over the phone for a great Bible study. I loved the book as it is so appropriate for me these days! I truly do want to age gracefully.

    Like

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.