Gone Viral

Gone Viral

About as quickly as Coronavirus went viral, virtually everything else went virtual. Today I saw an ad for a virtual weight loss class. Oh the things made possible by Zoom. I am wondering if the weight loss is real or virtual. And if it’s real, are they only measuring inches lost from the waist up? I can see why such a class could gain traction. Gyms have been closed or only partially opened for months. And while I am not too much for the gym itself, I have missed the pool, which reopened this week. I didn’t remember swimming requiring as much effort as it did today, nevertheless it was great to be back. Well, sort of great. I neglected to realize that due to Covid, they are no longer issuing towels. Fortunately for me, the guy at the front desk had a secret stash. Turns out they did retain a small laundry service for those of us who did not read the fine print in the reopening email.

These days everything comes with fine print...and an additional Covid disclaimer. I had no idea what a dangerous sport basketball was until I came face to face with the waiver that will allow my six year old to participate. At least the games will be played in a church gymnasium. By the sounds of the waiver he could use some prayer coverage. What the waiver did not mention were the risks associated with NOT letting a highly social six year old have an outlet for all his energy during a long and otherwise socially distanced winter. Let’s just say the benefits outweigh the risks.

All of life has risks, you just don’t sign for all of them. If air were marketable, you would have to sign a waiver for it. Breathing can be deadly. (Funny- except that we are in the middle of a Covid epidemic so it’s actually not.) The point is, you have to breathe to live, and sometimes we are scared to breathe. To breathe in possibilities….outside of our comfort zone. To exhale and let go of the stress and tension we hold inside thinking that if we can hold it in, maybe we will hold up. To inhale the will of God, both His known will for us (see the 10 commandments and the teachings of Jesus) and His will for our individual lives, played out in both the hardships and the opportunities He allows to come our way. To exhale our own expectations of life, ourselves, and how things should be.

Circumstances and seasons change, even our perspectives change. God never changes. He is omniscient, omnipotent, immutable and transcendent. He is for those who are for Him. Since He is before all things, we are free to inhale what lies before us. Since He holds all things together, we are free to exhale what isn’t actually ours to hold.

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I am hoping that the schools and the pool stay open. That the number of Covid cases worldwide declines, that the economy rebounds, and that I did not miss anything too important in the fine print for the washer, dryer, and the heating and air conditioning unit upgrades, that of necessity came my way in the midst of the pandemic. I am hoping that when life presses in, He will help me press into Him, the One who knew all about the fine print before printers were ever invented. Class or no class I know I need the kind of weight loss Hebrews 12:1-2 talks about.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Life is short. Too short to carry the things which weigh us down that we are not meant to carry. And definitely too short to read all the fine print. You never know what a day will bring. It’s okay. Just don’t forget to breathe.