“I’m so scared, Mommy” she said, as she looked up at me with her big dark eyes, squeezing my hand tightly as the waves crashed and roared near us as we walked along the beach.
What my toddler didn’t realize in that moment was that her simple statement echoed the deep cry of my own heart, and the perspective of so many of us as the covid-19 pandemic began to become our reality.
Almost overnight, everywhere I turned I began to hear words like uncertain. Unprecedented. Crisis. Difficulty.
These words constantly rolled around my mind and my heart, just like the waves that pound the shore near the community where we live and serve in Baja, Mexico.
Desperate. Loss. Illness. Challenging times. Death.
Like so many others, our family’s daily routine suddenly shifted as we began to shelter in place. I watched the evening news, read daily virus updates and statistics, listened to the podcasts and projections of experts, let the opinions of social media in… and almost without even realizing it, I took my eyes from the Author and Perfecter of my faith. My perspective shifted and I began to stare intently at the ‘wave’ that was surrounding us, stealing my peace and filling my heart with anxiety at the unknown. Ebbs and flows of anxiety and fear swirled within me.
Then the virus arrived in our small Baja town. All of a sudden, the statistics had names, faces, histories, and relationship with our family. We saw people that we love suffer through the virus. We lost someone very dear to us.
The darkness was surrounding us.
That day, as we continued to walk along the beach, I looked down at my beautiful young toddler, and in response to her expression of fear I said to her, “don’t worry baby, just hold my hand. I’ve got you. You are safe when you are holding my hand.”
Almost as soon as the words had left my lips, I felt the Holy Spirit breathe life, peace and comfort into the very depth of my being.
The kindness of the Lord surrounded me.
Yes, He’s here. He’s present. He’s not unaware. He’s got us as we cling to Him.
Almost instantly, my perspective was shifted back to the Calmer of the Storm, and the words of Psalm 27 echoed in the depths of me.
I would have despaired
unless I had believed
that I would see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living. Ps 27:13
I would have despaired.
But, instead, I choose to believe that I will see the goodness of the Lord.
New words flooded my heart, overwhelming my spirit with peace.
Goodness. Belief. Trust. Peace. Joy.
Therefore, we do not lose heart.
Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
So, we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Cor 4:16-18
That, my sweet sisters, is where our perspective and our focus needs to be.
We fix our eyes on He who is unseen.
We fix our eyes on the Eternal.
We fix our eyes on the great I Am.
We fix our eyes on the One who has promised never to leave nor forsake us,
And to the One who has promised to work all things out for our good and for His glory.
He renews us day by day, from the inside out, as we fix our eyes on Him.
May you see and experience the goodness of the Lord.
May peace, rest, renewal and joy be yours today.
Guest post written by: Erin Kemp dos Santos - Missionary in Primo Tapia, Baja California, Mexico