Surviving covid lockdowns

Things can get pretty tough and will likely remain tough for some time. Covid reminds us that difficult times can come for anyone at any time. It is just that in this case, lost of people are going through it at the same time. Having a plan or focus during this very unpredictable time can help ease some of the mental stress and emotional strain at times like these and maintain, or even develop faith. But it can also help with any difficult times that we can face. In fact, the Bible quite openly addresses difficult and challenging times. Floods, slavery, the account of Job, the suffering of Christ, war, oppression and suffering for the gospel are all regular themes in scripture.

At the time of writing this, there has been announced yet another national lockdown just before Christmas. Many people's Christmas plans, a ray of sunshine in a difficult year, have now had to be cancelled with significant last minute changes. Plus the fact that many businesses are shutting down for a few weeks, possibly longer, while people get their head around new Covid strains and rises in cases. So what can we do? Can the Bible help?

There are a number of themes which are common in scripture designed to teach us how to engage with life in general. If we practice them when things are going well, when things get tougher, we have already laid a foundation. However, if we don't have that foundation, now is the time to build it!

Helpful pointer 1: Perspective

What you focus on will significantly affect your mental health and general emotional state. Humans tend to experience loss greater than the equivalent amount of gain. I.E If you lose £5 you will experience greater emotional stress than the joy received from gaining £5. Looking for what you gain can help with finding a positive perspective. And by gain I don't mean cynical gain (I've gained weight, debt, stress). Perspective can help you turn a perceived loss as a potential gain, I've lost time at work, but I've gained time with my kids. I've lost meeting up with friends, I've gained widening my network online. I've lost my normal exercise options, I've gained trying some different things. This won't answer all issues, but where you can, turning losses into gains can help reduce the emotional stress associated with loss.

Also, it can always be helpful to be thankful. Many Western countries have a lot more even in lockdown than many poorer countries have on a covid free day. We have extensive vaccine developments on the way and the finances to buy them for a significant proportion of the population. I still have running clean water, insulated housing, central heating, Christmas lights and much much more. Being thankful and focussed on what you do have, rather than what you do not, helps to shift to having a more positive perspective in line with what scripture teaches. In fact, the Bible encourages us to be thankful in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5). And ultimately, for Christians, the fact that we have Jesus in our lives means that we will never be in a place where we have nothing to be thankful for.

One final and significant perspective we can hold on to is that God's plans and purposes have not changed. Ours have, but we don't know everything. But God's haven't. So if you are thinking God's plans have fallen through for you, it means, they weren't God's plans. Covid has changed nothing from God's point of view.

Helpful pointer 2: Look for the opportunities

We can focus on losses, focus on what we miss, focus on the frustrations or focus on looking for opportunities. It could be taking up a simple hobby (or trying a few out, you never know what you might like) reading that book you have put to one side. Perhaps now is the time to commit to more Bible reading or even pursuing your marriage, working through some issues which have been pushed to one side. It could be spending more quality time with your children, learning to enjoy them in a different way. Even making phone calls, watsapp calls, skype calls etc to people to stay in touch with people more. I have made increased contact with a number of friends of mine over the course of this year which I may not have done without the year that we have had.

If you are off work, maybe there are personal issues and character things to work on. While books can be expensive, second hand one's area readily available. Pray and seek God on what you can do with any extra time you have and go for it. This may be a long lockdown, but we also may have more in the future especially during winter. doing something now, which you can pick up anytime there might be a future lockdown, will set you up more positively if it does happen again.

Helpful pointer3: Seek practical support

I don't know what is out there for everyone, but practical/financial help may be available so please, seek out and ask around. It is not only about governmental support but local and national charities, church organisations and other packages provided. I can't promise you what you might get, but there is no harm in making the effort to look and ask around. Even friends and family may be able to offer help in ways you might not expect. But trying and being honest people with people about support that you need is surely better than doing nothing.

Helpful pointer 4: Be honest about the pain

While looking at ways to engage and make the most of lockdown is helpful, being real about how you feel is extremely important. Developing strategies to help you not get really bad is great, but it will not always work, certainly not all of the time. There is no 'should' or 'shouldn't' when it comes to how you feel. How you feel is how you feel. It is just letting you know how you are doing and is an indicator that needs to be explored, understood and responded to not ignored or denied. Talking to others and praying through it (whether out loud, writing it down or painting how you feel are all acceptable) can help process, understand and come to terms with the hurt.

Even writing letters and emailscan be a great way to express how you feel. Different people can be better at writing it down than talking about it. Even if you are not sure if you will send it, writing it down can help you process how you feel, and pull it together. You may find this helps you to then talk about it if you prefer to not to send it to someone. This can then also begin to form ways for you to pray about it.

Helpful pointer 5: Hope

One of the challenges of situations like this is that it tests what our hope is really in. When you lose something, and you experience emotions like despair, then it is likely that you hopes were set on that or those things fulfilling you, answering your problems, giving your life meaning etc. But for Christians, while these things can all be good, they were never meant to be something that we put our primary hope in. It was always meant to be Jesus. Whether churches close, we get sick, do not see family for long periods, or have cancelled celebrations and children's birthdays, even lose our jobs or have hours reduced significantly. These things were never meant to be what our ultimate hope was in. Sometimes, when they get taken away it is a call to adjust the focus of our hope and make sure it is in what God intended our hope to be in so that when something else happens, we cope better.

Helpful pointer 6: Prayer/praise

Prayer and praise is crucial, it can be part of praying through how you feel, helping you to focus on other things, setting your hope right, developing thankfulness and helping to lift you out of drowning negative feelings. God wants to journey with us in all that we go through. Prayer and praise help us to come into a greater awareness of God's presence in our lives and receive his love, comfort and strength and position us to be able to hand things over to him, such as burdens he never meant for us to carry and be real with him about how we feel.

Prayer can help you to set your hope more firmly on Christ, bring God into your situation with how you feel and help you to gain a Godly perspective.

Helpful pointer 7: Be other centred (as much as possible)

Focussing on the good of others is central to the gospel. It is the very heart of the meaning of love. Praying for them, phoning them to check up on them, seeing how you might be able to support them can all be part of being other centred. As scripture indicates that love actually pushes out, removes or drives out fear. This is partly to do with God's love and love for God being in us driving out our fears, but it includes love for others. When we focus on ourselves, it can weigh us down, but looking for opportunities to love others through prayer, relationship and practical support can really help. Not just family and friends but even people you chat to in shops or meet in hospitals. A kind word or encouragement can mean the world to someone even more so in difficult times. So seek to love, both live in the love of God but also to reach out to others in love more which is part of your 'looking for opportunities'. Do not underestimate how God can work through you in times like this. As posted on the facebook page, God's plans have not changed because of Covid.

There are no perfect answers, but if we apply even some of the above, along with anything else you can think of, lockdowns and whatever else may come our way, do not need to hit us as bad as we think, and we, as Christians, can live more in the empowerment God gives us, living as children of light, children of his Kingdom, as we work through the challenges we face and bless others in the process of doing so.