Are we nearly there yet… - Reflection by Dean Sue

Many of you will remember this statement from childhood days. Well I do! I remember being squeezed into the back of a very small car with my brother and sister for car journeys to grandparents and to beauty spots or holiday destinations. It was not a comfortable experience and invariably one of us would ask ‘are we nearly there yet’.
At the recent webinar, ‘Who cares? What kind of life after COVID-19,’ one of the contributors used the phrase to reflect on the journey of Covid 19 and to ask ‘are we nearly there yet’. Of course the answer was, not yet.
​
I have been reflecting on this statement over the past few days as I observe more and more people getting frustrated, because we are nearly there, but not quite. I am one of those people, I would like to have my hair cut, I would like to have coffee with friends, I would like to have a meal out, but it is still not possible and I can feel the frustration within myself. There are friends who tell me that they recognise behaviour in themselves that just would not happen in ‘normal’ times. It feels harder this time round to deal with the frustrations of being nearly there, but not quite.

For me what does not help is the continually toing and froing of information about when we will come out of lockdown. Only this morning I heard that the Chief Medical advisor, Chris Whitty, has warned about coming out of lockdown to quickly and the threat of another wave if we did not take things slowly. My brain tells me that that makes sense especially in the light of other lockdowns, but my emotions respond differently. I feel the frustration rising.

To deal with this frustration I think of the advice to stay in the present moment. To live each hour and each day in the present. It is not easy I know, but if we stop breathe and think of the God who knows and loves us perhaps our frustration and stress will reduce.

We need to remember and dwell on the fact that by staying present in the moment God is with us in that moment. God has not abandoned us, God is with us through all the trial and tribulations. As we continue our Lenten journey towards Good Friday and Easter and as we continue to walk in lockdown we need to take a day at a time. We need to be trusting and hopefully people. We need to try and dwell in the moment WITH God.

Dean Sue

While you're here:
Why not prepare for next Sunday's worship? Our preparation sheet for adults and for children can be accessed by clicking on the Resources tab of this website: https://www.prayerforliverpool.org/prayer-resources.html.