We are in an unprecedented crisis due to a pandemic, but we can handle it well with God’s guidance. In this post, I’ve scoured my 600+ blog posts to give you hope, encouragement and practical tips for navigating these uncertain times.
Under each heading, you’ll also find a Scripture verse for Christian meditation to give you peace and perspective. I’d also appreciate your shares on social media so more people can find hope and help during these troubled times.
How to Handle this Unprecedented Crisis
There has never been a time like this in recent memory. Yet, there has never been a better time to place our full trust in our sovereign, loving Lord God Almighty. He saw this crisis coming before any of us were born, and he can already see the ending. Also, we can find encouragement for all of our problem areas within the pages of Scripture. Keep reading to learn my personal tips for handling this unprecedented crisis under each heading below.
Here’s a breakdown of the topics covered in this post.
Your Top Problem Areas
Anxiety
To fight anxiety, I’m meditating on God’s Word every single day, throughout the day. My primary area of anxiety is trusting God in our financial future, since the near future of the American economy is unknown. I’m reflecting on God’s faithfulness to me in the past, which gives me peace about the future. Every day, I must surrender the future to him in prayer. This helps build my trust in my Lord and Savior, and I hope it helps you too.
Meditation Verse: Cast all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7 ESV
Tip: Turn off the news for half an hour, and spend it on Bible study, prayer, meditation or listening to praise songs instead.
My best posts on anxiety:
Overcoming Anxiety with Christian Meditation
A Unique Way to Overcome Anxious Thoughts
Fear
Fear is running rampant in our culture. Fears over health, finances, friends, shortages…you name it. But God is still in control, and tells us over and over again in Scripture not to fear. I am finding comfort in the story of Jesus rebuking the storm. All he had to do was speak a word, and the sea was calm. His eye is on us even in the storms we are facing now, and if he chooses not to calm it for us, he will still watch over us in love.
Meditation Verse: There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. 1 John 4:18a ESV
Tip: When you experience a fearful thought, consider it a call to prayer. Recite the verse above, aloud, calling on Love Himself to help you overcome.
My best posts on fighting fear:
How to Face a Giant with Rock-Solid Faith
How to Face Fiery Trials with Faith
Why You Need to Stay in the Present
Emotional Health
On a scale of 1 (low) to 10 (high), how is your emotional health right now? Mine is pretty good, considering that I’ve had a quiet, work-from-home life for years. But I know that many of you are struggling. It’s important to manage your emotional health so that your physical health doesn’t suffer. If you are a 5 or lower on the scale, I hope this post will help you restore your emotional health.
Meditation Verse: For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Tim. 1:7 NKJV
Tip: Every day, either make a phone call or video chat with another person who will encourage you. I’m doing this every day to preserve my own emotional health, and I recommend the same to you.
My best posts on emotional health:
How to Balance Life’s Highs and Lows
When Life Beats You Down on All Sides
How God Gives You Freedom from Oppression
How to Face Life Changes with Greater Faith
The Best Counselor We Can Find
The Difference Between a Load and a Burden
Depression
Though the quarantine can keep the virus from spreading, it isolates us. If you were already struggling before this crisis began, you may feel overwhelmed with discouragement. I have endured seasons of depression in the past, and I understand how essential it is to fight back with intention.
Meditation Verse: He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. Psalm 40:2 NIV
Tip: Don’t stay in bed. Eat a healthy meal, take a shower, let the sun shine on your face, and walk for 30 minutes per day (or go on a drive). These regular rhythms will help you feel better. Follow the tip above for connecting with others every day. Most important, call your counselor or a hotline if you feel like your are slipping into despair. Don’t wait to reach out, because your life counts!
My best posts on depression:
How God Lifted Me Out of the Pit
3 Ways Depression Hurts Your Marriage
How to Find Hope and Help as a Depressed Wife
Loneliness
Though the quarantine can keep the virus from spreading, it isolates us. If you were already struggling before this crisis began, you may feel overwhelmed with discouragement. I have endured seasons of depression in the past, and I understand how essential it is to fight back with intention.
Meditation Verse: Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. Psalm 25:16 ESV
Tip: Don’t stay in bed. Eat a healthy meal, take a shower, let the sun shine on your face, and walk for 30 minutes per day (or go on a drive). These regular rhythms will help you feel better. Follow the tip above for connecting with others every day. Most important, call your counselor or a hotline if you feel like your are slipping into despair. Don’t wait to reach out, because your life counts!
My best posts on loneliness:
The Value of Christian Friends
Dealing with Loneliness in Marriage
How to Ease Loneliness Through Faith and Fellowship
Ease Loneliness Through Friendship
Thought Life
Satan wants to defeat, distract and discourage you during this pandemic. But you can and must fight back with the power of God’s Word, just like Jesus did when he was tempted. Don’t believe his lies; study the truth of God’s Word instead.
Meditation Verse: For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. Romans 8:5 ESV
Tip: Pray that God will show you an area where Satan is accusing you or lying to you, and ask God to help you believe in the truth of his Word instead.
My best posts on transforming your thought life:
Transforming Your Thought Life
How “But God” Can Transform Your Thought Life
How to Break Free from Stressful Thoughts
Fighting Bitterness After Unwanted Changes
When You Need to Reprogram Untrue Thoughts
How the Bible Can Change Your Thought Life
Spiritual Warfare
Our invisible enemy is not just a virus; it’s the Accuser, who has set himself against humanity since the beginning of the world. But you aren’t defeated when you have the power of God’s Word as arrows in your hand. Learn more about spiritual warfare in the posts below, and fight back in prayer and faith.
Meditation Verse: He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me. Psalm 18:17 NIV
Tip: Acknowledge before God that you need help both recognizing and fighting your spiritual battles. Read my book for more information on the 17 common areas where Satan attacks you.
My best posts on spiritual warfare:
How to Stand Firm in Spiritual Warfare
How to Engage in Spiritual Warfare
5 Key Tactics for Fighting Spiritual Battles
7 Best Posts on Spiritual Warfare
Using Prayer to Fight Spiritual Battles
Your Faith-Based Solutions
Now that we’ve looked at the problems, let’s look forward to the solutions that God provides us during these troubled times. He has already claimed the victory for you!
Trusting God
Perhaps God is inviting you to deeper trust in him during this season of trials. On the other side, your faith could come out much stronger than it has ever been. When you experience any of the problems above, you can overcome with God’s help and learn to trust him more.
Meditation Verse: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV
Tip: Every day, choose a new area, big or small, where you declare your full trust in God. If you can do this aloud, it will be an even more powerful practice.
My best posts on trusting God:
Trusting God in my Current Season
When God Closes a Door, Sing Anyway!
How to Trust God in an Awkward Season
When God Closes a Door, Sing Anyway!
How to Trust God When a Door Closes
When You Meet Up with Impossible
Trusting God in Times of Transition
Gratitude
Gratitude is one of the key ways we can fight all of the negative emotions and thoughts tempting us. By deliberately thanking God inside of your circumstances, your faith can grow to enormous heights.
Meditation Verse: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Philippians 4:6 NIV
Tip: Every time you put food in your mouth, thank God for something new. On average, you’ll be thanking him at least three times per day!
My best posts on gratitude:
Embracing Change with Thanksgiving
How to Be Thankful While You Wait
How to Be Thankful in Your Limitations
How to Thank God in Your Overwhelm
Gratitude in the Valley of Shadows
Peace
We can choose peace during difficult and uncertain times when we worship the Prince of Peace. He has promised to give us peace no matter what circumstances we face. You can share peace with others who desperately need it out of your overflow, when you spend one-on-one time with him every day.
Meditation Verse: Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27 NIV
Tip: Every time you take a shower or bath, spend that time praying for God’s peace to reign over your heart, home, family members, and community.
My best posts on peace:
How to Fill Your Troubled Heart with God’s Peace
How to Find Peace in a Hiding Place with God
Review: Creating Calm in the Center of Crazy
What to Do When Your Heart is Overwhelmed
The Amazing Power of Surrender
How to Find Peace Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Hope
We can have hope, despite these trying times, when we focus on God’s promises. Every single promise he made about the Messiah in the Old Testament came true and are scientifically proven, and there are three times more promises about Jesus’ second coming in the Bible. This knowledge can provide us great hope and perspective, because if the absolute worst happens, we will be in the presence of Jesus if we believe. We can also choose to hope that better days lie ahead for us in the coming weeks, months, and years, as long as God is on our side.
Meditation Verse: Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:23 NIV
Tip: Sing or listen to a song or hymn about hope when you feel discouraged.
My favorite hymn: My Hope Is Built On Nothing Less
My favorite contemporary Christian song on hope: My Hope Is In You by Aaron Shust
These are my best posts on hope:
How to Have Hope in Hard Times
The Best Christian Meditation Verses on Hope
Hoping for Spring: An Easter Prayer Poem
Prayer
What a time to have a revival of prayer! Prayer draws you near to your Father, Savior, and Counselor. When you pour out your honest feelings in prayer (yes, all of them), God will reward you with the comfort of his loving presence. This has happened to me many times, and he will draw near to you when you cry out to him.
Meditation Verse: Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Mark 11:24 NIV
Tip: Pray more often throughout the day. I begin and end my day in prayer, and I pray at meals. I also pray when I have insomnia. Praying throughout the day increases your faith and deepens your relationship with God.
My best posts on prayer:
How to Pray Boldly for Greater Faith
8 Ways to Strengthen Your Faith While Waiting in Prayer
How to Grow Your Faith with Small Prayers
The Power of Intercessory Prayer
How to Hear God’s Gentle Whisper
How to Use a Clock in Your Prayer Life
7 Unconventional Prayer Closets
3 Formal Prayers That Can Strengthen Your Faith
How Consistent Prayer Changes You
Are You Waiting on an Answer to Prayer?
Why Intercessory Prayer Matters
Spiritual Growth
Many of us have extra time on our hands as we are forced to stay at home. Rather than bingeing on food, wine, or television, you can intentionally use this quarantine season to focus on your spiritual growth.
Meditation Verse: Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. Ephesians 4:15 NIV
Tip: Pick one area of growth every week, using the posts below for inspiration on which areas to focus on. Look up scriptures on the topic and dedicate it to prayerful consideration.
My best posts on spiritual growth:
How Humility Removes Your Know-It-All Mask
Weeding My Heart’s Garden, Part 2
How to Conquer Temptation with God’s Word
Rejoicing in the Truth, Not Injustice
How to Develop a Friendship with God
How Your Faith Can Grow in Life’s Transitions
5 Perseverance Verses to Help You Press On
How the Heat of Your Trial Refines You
This is How You Can See Your Blind Spots
Encouragement
We all need to focus on something lighthearted each day of this crisis.. When you seek encouragement from God in times like these, you can also share it with others who badly need it.
Meditation Verse: You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry. Psalm 10:17 NIV
Tip: Every day, watch, read, or listen to something that makes you laugh.
My best posts on encouragement:
9 Simple Ways to Encourage Others
4 Ways to Renew Your Faith this Spring
How to Worship God Through a Garden’s Beauty
A Full Basket of Spring Reads for Christian Women
How to Live a Well-Watered Life
Look Up and Find Encouragement
How Writing Out Scriptures Can Grow Your Faith
The Best Way to Offer the Fruits of the Spirit
3 Ways to Praise God More Often
Christian Meditation
What’s the difference between Christian meditation and other types of meditation? It’s hiding the incomparable power of God’s Word in your heart and mind to transform your thoughts. When you invite the one true God to transform your thoughts with his own words, you really can overcome anxiety, fear, negativity, etc. You aren’t just telling yourself a nice affirmation that holds no lasting power.
Meditation Verse: Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Joshua 1:8 NIV
Tip: Choose one verse to meditate on each week. Then write it out and post it in a highly visible area so you can hide it in your heart and mind.
My best posts on Christian meditation:
Meditate on God’s Word: 2 Easy Ways
How to Meet God in the Night Hours
How to Find Greater Peace Through Christian Meditation
The Best Christian Meditation Verses on God’s Hands
How to Fight a Scarcity Mindset with Christian Meditation
How to Gain Victory in Your Thought Life
Your Areas of Personal Growth
When you reframe your mindset, you may see all the positive possibilities of this unique season. It can be a time for your creativity to flourish. It may also be a time when you need to focus on intentional self-care so you can provide well for others.
Creativity
If you are a creative person with time on your hands, it’s the perfect chance for you to dust off your tools and start making beautiful things again. Whether you are a writer, baker, musician, dancer, or any other creative type, you can find blessing, peace, and fulfillment in creative activities.
Meditation Verse: He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. James 1:18 NIV
Tip: Watch a YouTube video on your favorite area of creation, and use what you learn to hone your craft.
My best posts on creativity:
How Consistent Writing Stretches You
How to Draw Close to God While Writing
How to Follow Your Calling as a Creative Person
Praise God with Your Creative Gifts
Which Harvest Fields Are Yours?
Self-Care
Self-care isn’t really about selfishness; it’s about taking care of yourself so you are at your peak for serving God and others. It’s an area of personal growth that you really can’t afford to neglect. One of the ways I enjoy caring for myself is reading for pleasure. Check out my most recent book review post here for my book recommendations, or view my Books Worth Reading page if you enjoy reading.
Meditation Verse: Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken. Psalm 55:22 NIV
Tip: Combine your self-care time with honoring the Sabbath each week. That way, you’ll draw closer to God while you are caring for yourself, and you’ll feel refreshed and renewed inside and out.
My best posts on self-care:
How to Avoid Burnout in a Season of Giving
Seeking God in the Quiet: Why Quiet Time is Essential
How to Reach Out for God’s Comfort
How to Receive Spiritual Refreshment
Practical and Relationship Tips for You
We’ll get through this crisis better if we share practical tips with one another. Here are some practical tips for you!
Managing Your Home
If you are spending more time at home, it’s important to have a strategy on how to manage it. I save the latter third of my day to clean, cook, and organize. By breaking my day into sections, I can still prioritize the management of my home without neglecting it or spending too much time on it.
Meditation Verse: She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. Proverbs 31:17 NIV
Tip: If you live alone, break chores into different days of the week so you aren’t overwhelmed. If you are married and/or with children, be sure to clearly communicate a delegation of chores. After chores are finished, reward yourself, your husband, and your children with a small treat or a fun activity.
My best posts on managing your home:
Too Much Mary, Not Enough Martha
A Time to Keep, A Time to Throw Away
More Abundance in a Lean Season
How to Declutter and Simplify Your Life
Working at Home
I’m in my 13th year of working from home, and I love it. But I know many of you have been suddenly thrust into the world of working from home, and you’re not sure how to navigate it. The posts below will give you practical tips from my years of experience to help you work from home with greater peace.
Meditation Verse: Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters. Colossians 3:23 NIV
Tip: Stick to a schedule of working hours. Mine are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays, just like a job outside the home. If you fail to set a schedule, your working hours will either overtake you, or you’ll procrastinate and get yourself into a world of trouble.
My best posts on working at home:
7 Ways to Find Balance as a Work-at-Home Mom
How Diligence Helps You Meet Your Goals
How to Multiply Your Time with Wisdom
Marriage
With so many of us spending more time sequestered in our homes, it’s make or break time for our marriages. This quarantine will likely reveal the hidden fissures of your marriage, and it’s important that you deal with them immediately to get back on track.
Meditation Verse: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35 NIV
Tip: Choose one way every day to honor your spouse in thought, word or deed. Also, focus on one area where you need to overlook an offense.
My best posts on marriage:
How to Be Your Husband’s Advocate
Why You Need to Help Your Husband
How to Stand Strong on God’s Word in Marriage Trials
Why You Need to Make Allowances in Your Marriage
What Might Be Silently Killing Your Marriage
How to Change Angry Thoughts in Your Marriage
Parenting
Many of us are scrambling for ideas on how to keep our children healthy, happy, entertained and on track in their learning. Here is a list of ideas for you.
Young children
Fill your kitchen sink halfway with water and a couple drops of dishwashing liquid. Then let your child stand on a stool and use a straw to blow into the water and make “bubble mountains.” But tell them not to drink the water! This also works in the bathtub. When my children were young, this activity kept them busy for hours.
Tweens
Make your own stickers using stuff you already have around the house. Watch this video of my 11-year-old daughter demonstrating how to make a sticker. There are more Christian craft ideas for tween girls in this wonderful book.
Teens
Have them interview older relatives via the phone and record family stories in a Google doc. They can do more research online to fill in your family tree. Most teens need to practice phone etiquette, and our seniors desperately need human contact right now. You’ll accomplish two wonderful goals with this type of collaboration.
All ages
Involve your children in household tasks. If they have never learned to wash and fold clothing, clean the floors, dust, wash windows, clean bathrooms, put dishes away, cook a simple meal, plant a garden, etc., NOW is the perfect time to teach them! These are life skills that will benefit them greatly when they become adults. I started teaching my children to pick up their own toys at age 1, and every year I gave them a bit more responsibility.
Meditation Verse: Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. Proverbs 22:6 NIV
My best posts on parenting:
How to Speak Life to Your Family
Praying a Blessing Over Your Child
How to Set Boundaries on Bad Behavior
How to Set Boundaries on Negative Behaviors
5 Books that Inspire Fresh Hope for Christian Moms
The Do’s and Don’ts of Step-Parenting
How to Handle Anger in 3 God-Pleasing Ways
Cultivate 7 Virtues in a Salt-and-Light Home
How to Find Strength When You Are Weary
A Simple Tool to Help You Love Others
Don’t Forget the Lenten Season
In all the hoopla of the past couple weeks, you may have forgotten that this is the Lenten season, where we remember that Jesus suffered and died for our sins. However, it’s not too late to observe it. Here are several posts to inspire you!
3 Easy Ways to Prepare for Lent
How to Give Up an Idol for Lent
5 Helpful Books to Inspire Your Faith During Lent
40-Day Lenten Devotional and Scripture Writing Plan
The Breakthrough Power of Fasting for Lent
Three: Prayer for Holy Week #3
How to Handle This Unprecedented Crisis: Practical and encouraging tips in 22 different areas to help you weather this storm. #pandemic #faith #encouragement Click To Tweet
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