Pigtails, Positivity and Peace.

How are you doing, my friend? Are you tripping on the tidal waves of terror from the news or are you floating on faith that no matter what, God has you?

I, for one, am a floater. More than that, I’m a walker. In the midst of the Fear and Foreboding spirits at work in the world these days, I’m walking with Jesus in Full Faith. I’m declaring Peace & Hope over my Home, my City, my Country and yes, even my Planet.

Our World is currently in quite the tizzy over COVID-19 and while I am not downplaying the risks and the needs for precaution from it, I am downplaying the focus on the fear of it. Just like anything in life, we need to guard our hearts and minds from bowing down to the nasty ruler of fear.

Guarding our hearts and minds means being literally on guard at what you allow into your heart and mind. Are you continually looking up the Worst Case Scenario Stories? Are you watching movies/shows/videos that play out pandemic story lines? Are you talking with Fear Filled Friends and allowing their spirits of fear to override your Prevailing Peace?

I have no condemnation for those walking in fear, my heart actually breaks for them. Although my heart breaks for them, I cannot walk the same road they are, it just doesn’t make sense to me. My trust is in God and I know that whatever becomes of this season of COVID-19 that ultimately some good will come from it, somehow, someway.  (Rom 8:28)

My husband and I were just talking about that and about how people seem to be stepping out in overwhelming generosity in the midst of this fear. I just read two stories of restaurant patrons that left HUGE tips – I mean HUGE 4 figure tips – to help the staff through this time. Our exchange daughter in Austria experienced a Flash Mob of people playing their instruments on their decks of their apartment complex. She said it was utterly magical, how fabulous is that?! There are lots of reports of people helping people, people reaching out to people and kindness having an upswing greater than that of Uncle Scrooge after his ghostly visitations. To me, that is already a silver lining in this virus cloud. That is God at work behind the scenes to help us grow in love and favor towards one another. Those are the stories to search out, those are the stories to spread. If you cannot find those stories, BE THOSE STORIES!

The challenge is therefore to stay glued to the positive. It’s not a matter of ignoring what is going on in the world, but ignoring the sources of fear and hysteria vying for your attention. Here is my challenge to you:

1. Stop surfing the web/watching the news. Stop watching and clicking on the negative, fear filled stories that are permeating our digital world these days. If something came about that you NEEDED to know, trust that you would definitely find out, so you can turn off the news for now without fear of missing out.
2. Start looking for the laughs. My husband and I have instituted a “Funny-Only Protocol” to guide our streaming choices. We have chosen not to watch scary movies – even if they are not virus related. There is just no reason to tune into fear of any sort as its running rampant in the world. As a result, we have been literally laughing out loud at the screen and that has been raising our inner peace.
3. Spread the love. Reach out to others via phone call or text and keep in touch. Let them know you love them and walk through past funny memories with them. Giggle over the small stuff, like the Toilet Paper rage. Let laughter lead your day and watch fear just step away.
4. Trust in Jesus. You may not be a person prone to trusting in anyone, especially someone you can’t see or have no relationship with but Jesus is never a wrong choice. As a matter of fact, if you find yourself in panic mode, not being able to see outside the fears of this world, reach out to Him. You don’t need perfectly worded prayers to garner His favor or attention, the most simple prayer on the planet will suffice – “Help Me Jesus!”

I guess overall, I’d just like to remind and encourage you that you have a choice. You can hide yourself in a bubble world and keep your head tucked in, like my cat:

Or you can go for a walk in the sunshine, hold on tight to your loved ones that are right in front of you and make the best of a bad situation. Pretend there is no internet and play games, read a book or just snuggle into one another and chat about your hopes and dreams.

I choose Peace and Hope in this time and I will continue to Spread Peace and Hope. The other day I was spreading it from behind the wheel of my car and in the aisles of the grocery store. As I was driving about I was jamming to a fabulous song “Graves Into Gardens” by Elevation Worship and declaring it all over my city. Doing so left a huge grin on my face so when I entered the grocery store it was as if I had a bubble of light around me. People looked at me and smiled and by golly I grinned from ear to ear right back at ’em. I had several fun, friendly conversations and smiled as a I watched families shopping & enjoying time together. While my grocery store experience was no 4 figure tip it was a little spray from the Hose of Hope and those are the “little things” that will get us all through this rough patch.

Whatever you do…Clump and Seal those fearful thoughts and toss them out like yesterday’s used kitty litter:

When you choose to Clump & Seal those fearful thoughts, the Odor of Fear will leave as well. Just like flies are drawn to decay, fear is drawn to fear. So, if you shut off the fear faucet and turn on the Hose of Hope, fear will turn and run. It’s no fun to try to scare someone you cannot scare. The kingdom of the enemy is not entitled to God’s Abundance, so it runs on a budget and it won’t waste resources on someone they cannot cause to cower in fear. (Thanks Graham Cooke for that bit of truth.)

May you remember to wash your hands often in this season and may you remember to wash your heart and mind even more often. After washing, apply the Mind Sanitizer of the Holy Spirit and let His Peace be your Peace.

Blessings – Love – Hope and PEACE to you,

Pamela