I’ve been back in the States for 2 weeks.
It’s been two weeks of rest, jet lag, chips & queso, guitar, writing, painting, journaling, naps, time with friends (ones that traveled with me so we could quarantine together), talking on the phone, Zoom worship sessions with my squad, and a lot of silence/solitude with the Lord.
It’s been an emotional couple of weeks.
Today is April 3 – we were supposed to be leaving our ministry host in South Asia today. We were supposed to have spent this full month with our host at the girls home, investing, discipling, and loving the girls there.
It was all cut short because of COVID-19. The World Race was cut drastically short by COVID-19.
It’s been an adjustment. It’s been a lot of grieving. Grieving that the World Race might be over for me. Grieving that my time with AIM might be finished. Grieving that this isn’t how I wanted my 5 years with Adventures in Missions to end.
This time has been full of patience, waiting, resting, and asking for guidance from Abba.
I have to be honest: I don’t feel like I’ve used the time to the fullest. I still have a long to-do list of things I want/“need” to get done.
But I have to be honest: I think this is the best place for me to be – not the most productive but soaking up all the rest and being the most in-tune with how I’m feeling.
Why do we assume “productive” means accomplishing the things on our to-do lists? Why can’t we change our definition of “productive” to include resting, solitude, and staring out a window. Can that be productive?
I’ve heard from a lot of people that they’re just really tired, taking naps and laying around during their “shelter-in-place” orders.
I wonder if our exhaustion is catching up to us. I wonder if we actually need more stillness than we’ve ever given ourselves room for. I wonder if we just need to put “stare out the window” on our to-do list in order to change our mindset about productivity.
I wonder what would happen in our lives if we adopted this mindset now, while we’re quarantined and made it a habit for when we’re out.
Wanna join me in giving it a try? Results may vary, but I think it’s a good experiment.
