It has been over a year since I have blogged anything. It is not that I have nothing to say. I just stopped knowing what I could say. Maybe you are in the same boat. Somewhere around 2 years ago, someone dropped egg shells in front of anyone that normally would have a voice or opinions. The people who were brave enough to still share thoughts and engage in conversation lost friends and influence. Now we tip toe around so that we don’t offend or provoke a reaction that we were not prepared to handle. Silently waiting. Silently thinking. Maybe, sometimes slipping out a comment or two. But never in writing. Let’s be honest… we all wish some people would post and say much less, but that has nothing to do with the last two years.
This past two weeks, however, I have been faced with very difficult professional decisions. Each direction I could step was covered with… you guessed it, egg shells. (not literally, we have a fairly clean office at the church) If you are in the same boat as me, I just want to say something really simple to you. Now is not forever. That is it. Now is not forever. The crazy pants times that we call today are going to come to an end and we will be left with the decisions we have made and the ramifications there of. Keep calm and carry on friends.
Now is not forever is a statement I have repeated at various times in my life to remind myself that everything is going to be ok. I think Amberley started saying it to keep me focussed… It is easy to see the tough stuff because it is so present and loud. In my life, there are people who want to phone because they are convinced you wanted to be yelled at today, or threatened or told that they somehow know how to handle a pandemic. (yes that happens to pastors, also I don’t know a single epidemiologist nor do I have a crystal ball… so none of us really know what we are doing) But we are all in this together, and we all have the same decisions to make. Today the decision I make is to say, now is not forever. Saying that statement out loud for me is a spiritual decision. It is a way that I say, Jesus is still in control. Maybe the sayings or comments we make feel trite but they have more weight than we usually assume. Something to think about anyways.
When there are egg shells, that means there are eggs. I like eggs, a lot. Maybe we can look forward to later when we enjoy an omlete. That is always better than walking on egg shells around people. Now, is not forever. You have got this. The future is bright and it is already tomorrow somewhere in the world. The sun will come up and a new day with new opportunities will sit in front of us. Enjoy it!
michaelfischer.co 