Christ is just like the human body—a body is a unit and has many parts; and all the parts of the body are one body, even though there are many. We were all baptized by one Spirit into one body, whether Jew or Greek, or slave or free, and we all were given one Spirit to drink….If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if one part gets the glory, all the parts celebrate with it. You are the body of Christ and parts of each other. (1 Corinthians 12:12-13,26-27)
I have decided there is nothing fun about having Covid. For me, it was a lengthy illness with bad days and just enough good days to drive me crazy. But the rare good days appeared like the dawn and filled my body with hope! On one particularly good day, I even got dressed, like in real clothes. I threw away the mound of Kleenex decorating the sofa. I cooked breakfast. I made a “to-do” list while I ate. Item #1: clean the kitchen. While loading the dishwasher, I realized my energy was gone; my headache was back with a vengeance; my nose was running…again!
I threw away the “to-do” list and collapsed on the sofa with a new box of Kleenex. I was tired of being tired. I wanted to feel like myself again. I wanted to get out of the house!! I was fighting tears. My phone buzzed. It was a text from a member of our church. It was a photo of a page from a devotional book, followed by this prayer: “As you wait out your stay in quarantine, I’m praying that God will reveal treasures for you…” The devotional was based on Exodus 14:10-14 (Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today.”)
The author used the illustration of experiencing the rolling tide delivering rare blue sea glass directly into her hands, her feet firmly in the sand. This devotional spoke personally and spiritually to me. I love sea glass. I hunt for sea glass with my oldest granddaughter, Aoife. When I finished reading it, I thought, “How did she know I needed to read this particular devotional?”
She closed her text with these words: “Just my thoughts for you today. (heart) Don’t know if you needed to hear that, but I felt led to share.” She did not know, but the Holy Spirit did!
We are the body of Christ. When one of us is hurting, we are all hurting! Together, let us stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will bring us today! Let us all have hope and stand firm, together as the body of Christ!
Prayer: God, thank you for this body of believers. Each of us needs the other to live and grow in your light. Please, Lord, continue to direct your Spirit to move us and lead us in the way you wish us to go, for your Glory! Lord, help us to stand firm and wait on your deliverance. We ask this in the name of your son, Jesus.
Standing Firm with You… Billie