A Life in Exile

When the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic started hitting closer to our Tennessee home, I decided it was time to be practical. After all, I’m now a widow, living on my own. If something were to happen, I wanted my boys to know where to find things.

I learned this lesson well from my father, who wrote EVERYTHING down and probably printed a copy of it out too. Though he killed a lot of trees, his children were grateful for his clear instructions when the time did come. I didn’t want my boys to think I’d dropped the ball — though I wasn’t planning on going anywhere anytime soon.

Though a pandemic may get us thinking of such morbid tasks, there are other things we need to be telling our children as well. Psalm 78 says:

We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done.*

Are you remembering the amazing things God has done in your life? Have you told them to your children? Why? Why not?

I realized recently that I had some wonderful pictures of our life in ministry overseas, but the memories they brought to me would not resonate with my children. They were too young to remember the before-and-after stories of the many we saw come to Christ, disciple, and grow. They wouldn’t know of the price paid by some in choosing to follow Jesus.

What did I do? I went through the pictures, saved them to an external hard drive and began the process of tagging them. It’s not a quick job, but one I pray will bring much joy to my boys and further generations in the years to come. They will see how God worked through their parents and give witness to his amazing deeds.

As the children of Israel moved out of Egypt and wandered in the desert as a result of their sin, they began grumbling. They had forgotten all that God had done, the miracles and wonders performed, on their behalf. They’d forgotten the heavy labor and bondage of slavery.

They’d forgotten that in every desert of trial, God gives an oasis of comfort.

Going back through those pictures became a way of remembering God’s faithfulness. I’d seen him do great things. I remembered that even though we had been through many trials overseas, God watched over and protected.

Even as I went through the trial of grief, I received my own oasis of comfort through beautiful acts of kindness, testimonies of those who had been touched by my husband, and through God’s Word.

My children need to know this. Why? Psalm 78, again explains:

So the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands.*

Whether you have physical children or not with whom to share, do not neglect proclaiming the goodness of the Lord. Your experience through this pandemic may be the opportunity to remember and share. Your experience through this pandemic may be the time in your life when God has shown you his power and wonders in ways that must be told.

Your sharing may be the reason someone puts their trust in Christ.

Has God done great things in your life? Don’t hold back — share.

Grace and Peace

*Psalm 78:4 (NIV)

*Psalm 78:6-7.