Interesting Times……
submitted by Gene Kern, ELCA

Here’s a theme I’ve developed and started putting out into an anxious system…..
The covid-19 virus is something that has happened to the world.  no one chose it.  no one wants it to stick around.  it is upending life as we know it with disastrous consequences for many, especially the least among us – the poor, the undocumented, the elderly, those whose health is compromised.  we are blessed to have scientists, physicians, nurses, therapists and a whole host of caring professionals working selflessly and furiously on behalf of the whole world.
In the face of all that is real and threatening, we still have some agency.  We cannot always control all of what happens to us, but we can choose our response to the realities we face.
– We can choose to stay connected.
   While we cannot be in the same room, many of us enjoy the blessings of technology that allows us to talk, write, and see each other at any time
– We can choose to be encouraging.
  Can we ever receive too much encouragement?  We are hard wired to go a long way on just a little affirmation.  We can encourage each other.
– We can remember the future.
  Try and picture what life will be like when this crisis is past.  Allow yourself to wonder what it will be like to gather again for worship and fellowship – the music, the laughter, the songs, the hugs.
if it helps……