The One Where Isolation Wasn’t An Option

Last week was Easter, and my sisters and I dove deep into scripture through Verse Mapping. It was definitely a different Easter being that we could not meet together in person; nonetheless, it was a wonderful time of learning and sharing with one another through God’s word.

Have you ever read something in the Bible for about the 40 millionth time and all of a sudden it jumps out at you like WOAH!? That’s how I felt when I read Luke 22 last week. So many different nuggets of truth and hope really grabbed my attention while reading through this chapter. However, the main point that I truly believe God was trying to reveal to me was this:

Through difficult times Jesus wanted & needed his friends with him.

On the brink of the most mental and physical anguish that any one single human would ever face, Jesus chose to spend his last free moments with his closest companions. He wanted his friends by his side. He needed his friends with him. I instantly began to search for other instances where Jesus kept his friends close to his side.

People need people, y’all. People need friends that are just there - friends that will just sit with you and pray with you and listen to you. When times get tough it helps to have a friend drudging through the muck with you - or at least holding your hand. With COVID-19 looming over all of us like a black cloud, forcing us to isolate from basically everything we’ve ever known, we have got to be intentional about staying connected.

Did you know that the word fellowship means to share something or to connect? In the second book of Acts Luke tells us that the disciples devoted themselves to fellowship. It was that important. They had a common interest, and that interest was Jesus.

It would be so easy to slip off into a pit of fear and anxiety right now. It would be so easy to throw a pity party for one because your only invitee would for sure show up. We can’t do this,ladies. We can not allow ourselves to fall into this dangerous trap. We need to keep our mental health in check during these uncharted times, and we need our friends to help us do just that. We need conversations and accountability and laughs and dreams and cries and even screams.

Jesus needed his friends and so do we. I pray that we will all be intentional in carving out time for our friends during this pandemic. I know Zoom isn’t the same as your favorite Mexican restaurant or a mani/pedi date - but it is a conversation. It’s communication. It’s a connection. And we need that right now.

Dear Created Woman, I urge you to reach out to someone today. You need her, and she needs you. These are weird, unprecedented times, but we can get through them together. Just think, one day we will be telling our grandchildren that back in our day we had to walk six miles in the snow just to get a roll of toilet paper.

Reflection

What has been your biggest struggle mentally throughout this pandemic?
Who are your three go-to friends when times get tough and why?
Brainstorm three ideas on ways to connect with your friends this week. Choose one and make it happen!

Goals

Write one goal you can accomplish today (at home, at work, with family, etc.) that will allow you to live out your purpose in regard to mental health:

14 When the hour came, he reclined at the table and the apostles with him. 15 Then he said to them, “I have fervently desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” (Luke 22:14-15 CSV)

42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. (Acts 2:42 CSV)