I am going to be celebrating this weekend like it’s a holiday. It isn’t a holiday really (I don’t think switching the clocks because of Daylight Saving Time counts). Still, I’m ready to mark this special weekend with both joy and solemnity.

Why is it special? Because March 13 is the moment that all this, the Covid pandemic, started in my life. And now I have hope that it’s nearly over.

You might observe a slightly different starting point for “all this.” For some, “all this” started when the first cases of community spread were observed in increasingly closer areas. For others, “all this” began when the schools closed down (March 11 in Loudoun County) or the first time our church went livestream only  (March 15). For others, it’s when hospitals and longterm care facilities stopped receiving visitors. Or when businesses shuttered and jobs were lost. Or when we couldn’t buy toilet paper! My goodness, we have been through a lot!

If you are like me, “all this” has been a test of faith.

For me, the lockdowns surrounding Covid and the fear of getting deathly ill were compounded by the fact that as a single person living alone, I was now stranded in my isolation. March 13 marks the day that I will have been alone for an entire year. That is certainly not something I would normally celebrate, but in fact it began a year of in-depth spiritual exploration where God took my isolation and drew me closer to Him. He gave me, through Galilee, a way to connect with others, to deepen my knowledge about Him, and to give back to my community. 

I agree with Jean E. Jones, an author we are reading in our Tuesday Virtual Small Group. She writes:

“Tests of faith come. But even when life seems unfair, we can take steps toward faith.”

This past year has enabled me to take steps of faith large and small. The church asked me to lead a small group and eventually to serve as the volunteer GROW Coordinator, helping to connect all our small groups. Feeling this was where God was leading me, I stepped up and stepped deeper into my faith. The Tuesday night small group became a way for me to connect with others—a virtual lifeline on the sea of uncertainty. And my writing about faith has drawn me closer to God. 

Have you felt uplifted, too, even in the midst of “all this?” Maybe it has been hard. I want you to you know that your experiences—good and bad—are valued and I invite you to share them in any of our small groups, where we hope and lament together. 

I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall.
I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me.
Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:-

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” 

~ Lamentations 3:19-24