Greetings to you during this unique and difficult time for so many. It’s a unique time because we have never experienced anything like it in our lifetime. We are all quarantined under the stay at home orders and find ourselves spending a lot of time at home. With this recent change I would like to offer several suggestions to spend the quarantine wisely to benefit us, our family and ministry.
- Invest this time in your spiritual growth and maturity - because our ability to be involved in church activities is limited, it is an opportunity to take more ownership of personal growth through the study of Scripture and prayer. This extra time is good for reading a book that you never got around to. Utilize this time to grow to be more effective for ministry in the future.
- Take care of your emotional health - Thanks to technology advancement, continue to regularly stay in contact with your team and support system. Make at least 5 calls a day with the goal of encouraging those who are in your ministry team and to continue to dream together about the future and discuss creative opportunities for ministry during this time.
- Be intentional about spending quality time with your spouse and children - it is a joy to have more time in the circle of family, invest in quality conversations and doing activities together.
- Spend time on things you have been putting off - for example read a Manuel about using the electronics you bought a while back, learn a new computer program or app, learn to cook a new dish, or try a new hobby
- Balance work with rest - Set quantifiable goals for each day and set incremental rest times after accomplishing a smaller goal or task
- Don’t neglect the physical health - it is important to stay active during this time in which movement is limited. Do something that allows you to stay active, even something like a project around the house or a walk outside helps you maintain physical health.
- Treasure each day of your life and do not take it for granted - Life is a gift from God. Covid-19 has shown us the fleeting nature of man. This virus incites a lot of fear over our health and well being. Take heart, our lives are in God’s hands, he loves and cares for us always.
Be a voice of hope and trust in God in a time of fear - let's share our faith with those who are hopeless now, (people are just a phone call away), the Gospel has the power to break through hopelessness. The gift of the Gospel breaks through the virus of sin and bondage and is the cure that gives the gift of forgiveness, reconciliation and new life in Christ!
Kind regards,
Ivan Mileyev
