Take Captive Every Thought

This has been a weird week. One filled will so many, many different emotions...disbelief, anxiety, sadness, anger, confusion, worry, etc. Quite frankly, it's a week like no one who is living today has ever experienced. A week that has coined a new term which I'm sure will make its way into the dictionary:  Social Distancing.

My girls are on spring break this week and my husband took the week off from work for vacation. These are some of the things we were going to do this week:

And these are the things we ended up doing:

In case you can't tell what we did, it's nothing! We didn't go anywhere this week, but stayed home and played inside and outside on our driveway the few times it wasn't cold or raining. I'm not complaining, because everyone should be following this and not going out unless needed for food, medicine, or essentials, but it's just so weird! And disheartening because we had some fun activities planned and were even going to spend a few days in Tulsa hanging out there with friends and being tourists.

I did go out this morning to the grocery store to get a few items and it was just weird and sad. Several people wearing masks, the toilet paper aisle was still empty, and several shelves were still bare from being ransacked last week out of fear of the unknown. I kind of get that, as we've been a bit tempted to go "panic buy," but we haven't. While driving, I really tuned into what one of the DJs was saying on the local Christian radio station I listen to. She was talking about ALL the information, whether it is good, bad, true, or false, that's floating around for us to hear. It's all over social media. It's really the only story on all of the local and national news broadcasts. It's the reason for the national, state, and local press conferences that are on each day. It's even in my emails as each day I receive a message from a new store telling me their plans during the COVID19 pandemic. The DJ talked about how overwhelming all of this information is and how it can start to negatively affect her. She said she's really having to turn it all off sometime and remember to "take captive every thought" so as to stay sane and grounded.

I loved her little devotion on this verse that comes from 2 Corinthians 10:5:

"We demolish arguments and take every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and WE TAKE CAPTIVE EVERY THOUGHT TO MAKE IT OBEDIENT TO CHRIST."

I have heard this verse several times before and realized in that moment of hearing it on the radio that I never really understood what it meant (or maybe rather I never really needed it) until now. Right now is such an easy time to get freaked out and very scared about what's to come. It is so easy to consume your mind every single minute of the day with COVD19 information. It reminds me of 9/11. At one point I realized I had to turn the TV off and stop watching all the coverage. It was just too sad and overwhelming to hear about anymore. I'm finding the same with the current situation we're living in. I'm drawn to find out whatever I can about it, but yet need a break!

There has been a lot of processing information, too, and processing information is where "taking captive every thought" really comes into play.

• When you start to wonder if social distancing will continue into the summer...take captive that thought to God and pray asking for a quick healing and cessation of this virus. 
• When you wonder if your kids will get to finish their school year...take captive that thought to God and ask him to provide a way for the school year to continue and the kids to not miss out on upcoming special events. 
• When you wonder if you will we run out of food and have to start rationing what you have...take captive that thought and ask God to keep your pantry stocked and help you come up with ways to make your food last longer than normal. 
• When you wonder if your family or you will catch the virus...take captive that thought and ask for protection upon your family and yourself, remembering that "...he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed." 
• When you wonder if you will die...take captive that thought praying that "...yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." 

When I've felt myself getting scared or nervous this past week I have had to just turn my mind off of it and remember that God is in control. I was "taking captive every thought" without even realizing I was living that verse out! God knew all of this was coming and has a plan and a reason for everything that is going on. God will sustain us through it all, even if it does get bad. Take captive every thought to God. Take your thoughts, your worries, your fears, and anything else you are thinking or feeling about life right now to God and ask Him to help you sort through it all. Ask Him to give you peace admidst this crazy, never before experienced storm of life. Take captive every thought. And wash your hands and stay home! :)