remind me...

I was reading in John 14 this morning. Our church has this communal set of devotions, so I read wherever it tells me to. Makes life simple.

In light of all the isolation, shelter in place, #covid19, the air just feels different when I head out my front door to get a few groceries, or to do payroll at the summer camp where I work. Uncertainty. Fear. Suspicion. Questions. Loneliness. Sorrow.

I’m sure there are other emotions out there, but those were the ones I recognized this morning. 

But in John 14 I found a reminder. Jesus tells me that He is sending, has sent, the Holy Spirit specifically to remind us of what He has said. Immediately following this verse of explaining the Holy Spirit’s job,

Jesus says this, “ 27 I leave my peace with you. I give my peace to you. I do not give it to you as the world does. Do not let your hearts be troubled. And do not be afraid.”

We are living in a time that is very naturally troubling. Health and job uncertainties. Isolation from family and friends. Communicating primarily through a computer screen (though thankful for that technology). No published end date. Satan would love for me to sit troubled all day long. 

And Jesus is just honest. We will have troubling times. We will have trouble. We will be afraid. We will struggle to feel peaceful. He tells us this in advance so we aren’t taken off guard by it.

For me, and for many of us, the people around us remind us of truth. At least, the emotionally healthy people around us that love us. That’s one of the best functions of the body for me- speaking truth to me. I have two close friends that I asked a while ago (prior to any virus thoughts) to be “reminder people” for me. I share with them when I am struggling to believe the truth, or if I see and sense a lie rolling around in my mind- and they tell me the truth. Truth about God as well as about myself.

But in this season, our access to our close people is stopped, or at least slowed to the computer monitor.

Jesus reminded me this morning that He has given me the Holy Spirit to be a reminder person for me.

 Jesus also tells me that He leaves me a unique peace. A peace found in a relationship with Him. He’s left me the Holy Spirit to remind me often that I have His peace. I can regulate my sense of sadness and loss in this season by leaning into Him and allowing His Spirit to bring peace.

Years ago, Beth Moore taught me that (I’m going to loosely quote her here :), “any change in our lives brings a sense of loss and therefore grief. Grief is normal with loss. Allow yourself to grieve.”  

Recognizing its presence helps me to give space for processing.

I first read this the year that my oldest son went off to college. I was so glad for him to grow in this new season, but also felt an overwhelming sense of pain that troubled me. Reading the above sentences and recognizing the normal grieving process that I was experiencing gave me such freedom. I could be excited for my son as well as grieving the loss and change in my life. All part of normal life.

The time we are in today is not “normal”. But it is a part of the larger context of each of our lives. We will no doubt always remember pieces of this time. I still remember where I was when I heard of the 9-11 tragedies. 

This time involves grief and loss for sure. But Jesus speaks a truth over me through the Spirit. A reminder. His peace. His ability to stand in troubling times.

So let’s be reminder people for each other in this season. Let’s remind each other that we (those who have trusted in Jesus' payment for sin) have the gift of the Spirit who is also reminding us. I love the scene in the Lion King where Mufasa tells Simba, “remember who you are”.

Let us remember...