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Showing posts with the label suffering

The New Normal with COVID-19

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I've seen the phrase "the new normal" passed around here and there and believe it's a good fit for what we are going through as March 2020 comes to a close.  The Brown Family is ready to begin week 4 of social distancing, as we started a week before most.  I don't believe this will be over in a few more weeks.  I don't even believe it will be over in a few months.  I think we will see a new normal emerging and will never be the same as we were pre-COVID-19. I'm not a scientist nor statistician.  I have actually avoided reading too much about the virus in order to maintain my own mental health.  I have read, watched, and listened to what I need in order to protect my family and community.  I've traveled down a rabbit hole and read way more than I've wanted to a few times.  Two of the best sources of information for me have been " Science Mike's " streamcast from 11 days ago (So remember when you watch that numbers/data has changed ...

True Love Isn't Conditional

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At church, we've been studying the book of Exodus.  Today, we focused on Moses' response to God calling him (from the burning bush, if you remember the story) to go convince the Egyptian king to free the millions of Israelite slaves. God tells Moses to go AND follows up his command with promises and encouragement: I will lead you. The elders will accept your message. I will raise my hand and strike the Egyptians. He (the king) will let you go. Moses's response?  "What if they don't believe me?" God has just said, "The elders will accept your message."  Obviously, Moses doesn't think God is telling the truth. So God preforms THREE miracles to encourage Moses.  Each miracle proves that nothing is more powerful than God.  No fear, no seemingly-unbeatable enemy, no national superpower. (Read the story in Exodus chapters 3 and 4. ) Moses' response? "Lord, I'm not good with words. I've never been. My words get all...