Becoming HIS Tapestry

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7 TIPS TO SAVE RELATIONSHIPS DURING COVID’19

Hey friends, how are you doing? We’ve had the best weather here in my neck of the woods. The last few days have been absolutely glorious, with bright, beautiful, sunshine, praise the Lord.  There is something special about sunshine, that makes it seem as if everything will be okay, I love days like these, they are God’s gift to me.  Jazz (our cat) and I are at it again, she insists on taking all the space near our kitchen window.  She is convinced she is capable of catching the birds as they flitter from tree to tree, in the backyard.  Perhaps I’ll take the time to begin our kitchen garden, the soil would be perfect for it.  Have you started on your kitchen garden? How early do you usually begin?

Last year’s bounty from our kitchen garden

This situation is getting very real, isn’t it? The quarantine time has been lengthened to the end of April now. Our governing bodies have taken even stricter measures to protect its own people. At the start of this virus, my husband said the closer we personally get to disaster, the more selfish we become, (such a wise man, he is definitely a keeper).  When disaster strikes in someone else’s yard, it’s easy to pray for them, to give to them, to feel empathy and sympathy.  Ah but the closer it gets to us, the less we think of the unfortunate, the louder we play the blame game.  Fear causes us to hoard and to lack patience with each other.  Fortunately for most of us, the Lord has placed us in a situation that almost guarantees to put any patience, we thought we had to the test.  Are you patient? How do you know? 

I must admit I struggle with patience.  This is a trait, I have asked the Lord for help with, on more than one occasion (be careful what you asked for, you just might get it). The truth is as a child of God, this is a character that’s given to us when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior.  The Holy Spirit dwells in us and this is part of the fruit that comes long with His presence in our lives.  Now all we have to do is exercise this trait, which is always easier said than done.  As soon as we think we are patient people, something comes along to prove we are not as patient as we thought.  

We’ve now been given the opportunity to spend time with our family; every day, twenty-four hours a day; day in and day out, for the foreseeable future.  Most of us were not exactly prepared to spend so much time with each other. For most, before this virus brought us mandatory stay at home orders, the most time spent together was between three to five hours out of a twenty-four day. The forced enclosure soon puts most of our best qualities to the test. The barrel of love, gentleness, patience, joy is slowly being depleted the more time we’re ask to spend with each other.  Believe me, a few relationships will not survive this journey, without holding in to the Lord with both hands.  How do we ensure that our relationships remain intact during this quarantine of the coronavirus? 

Pray – ask the Lord for wisdom (we need it to navigate this new normal). 

            Ask the Lord to keep watch over the door of our lips 

            Ask for (wait for it….) patience 

Read the Bible – this is God’s time to talk to us. He tells us more about Himself, more about us. He also tells how we are to live this life, even during this new normal.   

Plan for the day. Believe it or not, failure to plan for the day is almost guaranteed to end in frustration and anger.  Even though, you may be regulated to stay at home, plan for the day.  We may have to include activities such as daily chores, ensuring assigned school tasks are completed, and deliberately, intentionally choosing to spend time with the people in our lives.  

Read scripture aloud with the kids, 

Watch television together 

Be deliberate about conversations, think before we speak ( there will be a few apologies that way).  Ask: will these words edify, encourage, build up? Remember exhortations and reprimands are also forms of edification. Be careful, our words tell the tale of who we are becoming, ensure they represent the Lord well. 

Be intentional about actions, (they depict who we really are, do they not?) Stay in our lane, become the person, the Lord designed just for us. Remember although we are always responsible for our own actions, we can also cause others to stumble in their walk with the Lord.  Be careful, our actions tell the story of what we actually believe.   

Leave time to be alone, to enjoy a cup of coffee, read a book; the family will thank you for it). 

And lastly, pray, my friend, pray. We really do want to still have some friends and family at the end of this obligatory enclosure. 

How do you preserve the relationships in your life?

Let’s continue the conversation over on Instagram. Follow my Instagram and I will follow back, just let me know in the comment section. I would love to meet you 🙂

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36 responses to “7 TIPS TO SAVE RELATIONSHIPS DURING COVID’19”

  2. Love these tips Brenda! I especially need to grab ahold of planning out my days so I can feel organized!! Thank you for pointing this out, my stress from neglecting to plan things out could definitely affect my family members negatively!
    Such inspiration here❤️

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  4. Yes, ma’am. I love your share of this. We need to be deliberate and intentional about giving our quota to the relationship building. And yes we need to commit it to God’s hands too. He teaches us and gives us the wisdom to act.

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  5. Beautiful post! I never imagined I’d be spending so much time with my oldest daughter – a very chatty 7-year old. But it’s been nice being able to talk to her, spend quality time with her, play games, laugh and just bond. It’s difficult not knowing when all of this will end but I thank God for pushing pause and giving me quality time with my firstborn. He knows what we need even when we don’t.

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  6. Yes, many relationships will not survive this time, only with God’s wisdom will there be peace & harmony. My concern is for those who are in abusive relationships who are now locked in with their abuser 24×7 😦
    We truly do need to pray!
    Blessings to you this Easter Brenda,
    Jennifer

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  9. Hi Brenda. Excellent post. My go-to is prayer. Every morning before I do ANYTHING, I need to pray. It’s MANDATORY. I find that my thoughts and emotions are clearer and this can help me plan for the day. That “patience” fruit…yeah…God’s still working on me with that too. Btw, your heels? SUPER CUTE. Be blessed and stay safe out there.

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  12. Thanks for these guiding words! The one that sticks out to me most is “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God and are called according to his purpose”. I could remember relying on these words year’s back when experiencing a life financial crisis. The words were like the soothing effects of lotion on dry skin. HIS words certainly make a difference! Thanks again and stay safe.

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  13. Good advice, Brenda! My husband and I are isolated alone out in the big woods here. We venture out about once a week just to get an order from the grocery store and pick up our mail at the post office. We are re-discovering each other and talking a lot more. Our 47th anniversary is in two weeks, so we have been together a long time. We recently decided to do a date night at home with a recorded movie.

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