A Spiritual Playbook for Thinking Long-Term

Jason Weirich shares four strategies for moving forward in the spiritual life and practicing long-term ideals.

This week marks the 5 month “anniversary” of the COVID19 pandemic here in the United States. There are many different views on the virus. Is it a legitimate threat? Should people really wear masks? How long should we practice social distancing? And while it is crucial to ask questions and wrestle with what is going on around us, we cannot forget the bigger implications here: spiritual. I had written in a previous blog about what to do when we are first out of quarantine. This blog will focus more on the long-term ideals we need to practice.

People get a little on edge when you mention life after the virus or quarantine. It is almost as if people expect this virus to cripple us forever. We must prepare for life -- in general. The virus may live on and it may be like the standard Influenza virus we see every winter; I am not a medical professional and don’t pretend to be. But we MUST think about the spiritual implications at hand here. To not think about the spiritual, is to have our heads in the sand.

Here is my spiritual playbook for thinking long-term:

Find community: This looks different for everyone. First and foremost, if you are a believer, then you need to find a way to worship with others. DO NOT miss regular worship. Your soul needs consistency after living apart from others for months. Try to get to church in person and if needed then via the internet.

Find a hobby: A new hobby will rejuvenate you. Try to do something that brings life to you as well as life to others. If you love to write, start a blog. If you are great at cooking/baking, make a meal for yourself and bless a shut-in person with a meal. Great with tools and have a lot of time on your hands? Donate time to your neighbors or church and fix some things. Each of these ideas bring out the creative spirit God put in you AND bless other people.

Clean out your house: Have you ever met someone with a cluttered house who has a sense of peace? My guess would be “no”. Travel from room to room in your home and take inventory. Donate your unused items or sell them for cash? Cleaning out your home is important because it gives you more room and makes you simplify how will choose to live.

Create a timeline: Go to the Dollar Tree or any other discount store and purchase a few pieces of poster board. Grab some pencils (does anyone have these?) and sit down. Write a timeline from your date of birth to present. Include the following in your timeline: children, spouses, marriages, divorces, deaths, church events, etc. After you have written these onto your timeline, try to include the following: work milestones, major financial gains/losses, friendships, etc. All of these events matter. The timeline is for you to see what you have been through and remind you that God is bigger than you and me and a virus.

I hope you enjoyed this spiritual playbook. God bless you as we navigate the future -- in God.

2020 0813 JWeirich