If you're like me, then going into isolation for Covid ripped you away from the communities that helped you grow in faith. I can't see my church family, my extended Christian family, or my peers on my Christian college campus.
Not only have I been separated from my brothers and sisters in Christ, but the loneliness, disappointment, and fear caused by isolation has made it difficult to keep my focus on building my relationship with God. I'm still struggling with this, but I want to share what I'm learning so far. If you're also having a hard time staying close to God, I hope these help.
1. Community is Still Possible and Necessary
However, the Bible tells us community is essential to growing in faith. Psalm 133:1 (NIV) says, "How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity!" Unfortunately, that is not currently an option.
Community isn't only a physical presence, though! Here are the ways I've kept a community of believers around during isolation:
Use Zoom to host your already established small group (or to create a new one!) This allows you to see your friends, read scripture to each other, and pray as a group.
Use FaceTime to pray with a prayer partner. Before this virus hit, I had a friend that I prayed with every Friday over lunch. Once we had to move back to separate states, we decided to keep it up over FaceTime and it's been just as uplifting.
Call your church friends just to chat. It's so nice to receive a friendly phone call during isolation and it will keep you from drifting away even after we come out of isolation.
Use Instagram or Facebook to find live sessions with Christian speakers or bands. Ask questions in the comments to make it feel more personal. I've enjoyed finding several different church services to watch on Sunday mornings.
If you have friends in different time zones making calling difficult, write them letters! (For inspiration, read my post on handwritten letters)
2. Keep your Devotions/Prayer Schedule
Even though I'm sure your schedule has completely changed, try to keep your scheduled time with God the same.
At first, I decided to change when I read my devotions because I knew I had more time during the day. However, I ended up just putting it off over and over again saying "I'll have time later!" Don't fall into that trap.
For example, if you used to read your devotions before bed, keep doing that! If you usually pray before every meal and as soon as you get up in the morning, keep doing that, too.
If you've never had a scheduled time to devote time to God, now is the perfect opportunity to try it out.
3. Do Everything for God (Even When Relaxing)
Just because you might now have time to sit on your phone all day or binge watch every show on Netflix doesn't mean that's what you should be doing.
In a previous post called Stay busy during isolation... or don't! I still stand by the idea that you don't have to be productive 100% of the time and you don't need to feel guilty for needing time to rest and recover. If you're just laying around for no reason and neglecting time with God/avoiding responsibilities, though, that's not okay.
Resting when you need to is biblical, but laziness is not. Proverbs 10:4-5 (ESV) says, "A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. He who gathers in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame."
To me, being lazy means wasting time and failing to accomplish what has to be done. With that in mind, I don't think productivity means becoming an overworked robot, either. For example, things like painting, singing, going on walks, etc. are not necessarily "productive" in the sense that they make you money (unless you're talented enough to get hired in these fields), but they can definitely be used to glorify God.
This concept has been a struggle my entire life, but it's especially challenging during isolation. I've been thinking about Colossians 3:17 (ESV) which says, "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."
When you need a break from working from home or doing homework, rest in a way that glorifies God. Use your creativity, keep your body healthy through exercise, or simply avoid toxic media and keep your mind from drifting from your true purpose of serving God.
4. Praise God Even When Times are Hard
James 1:2 (ESV) says, "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds." Finding things to be thankful for during times of loss and disaster can be difficult, though, so here are a couple of ways to think of what to praise God for:
My dad taught me to look at the date each day, figure out what the correlating letter of the alphabet is, and come up with words that start with that letter that you're thankful for or that describe God. For example, today is the 19th. The 19th letter of the alphabet is "S," so my family thanked God for salvation, stars, and sleep today. When you run out of letters, pick one of your favorite verses and read it as a prayer for that day.
Something I like to do throughout the day is find the most random things I can be thankful for. Some examples might be headphones, multi-colored flowers, the feeling of sand under my feet, or hot showers. It's kind of like a game, but it has taught me that there are millions of reasons to praise God. (James 1:17 (NIV) "Every good and perfect gift is from above...")
Search your bible or even google for verses that praise God. Read one a day or read one over and over again to try and memorize it. The praises written in scripture are still relevant today because God does not change. (James 1:17 (NIV) "... coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting lights.")
I hope and pray that we all can use this time to strengthen our relationships with God and grow in our faith.