How do I use my day? Is Covid gone? Where are all my friends and are they all doing well? I'm terrible at staying in touch. Whose birthday is coming up? I should do something nice. What Zooms do I have today? Did I save that project?! It'll be in The Cloud. What is The Cloud? Also, what's today's weather like? I should really do one of those mental health walks from Instagram. But walking is so boring. Why am I not playing any sports? When Covid is gone, I'm gonna get into sports. I wonder how my crypto investments are doing. Ugh this bedroom needs gutted out. I hope people can't see into your bedroom when we're all in the Metaverse. Am I up to date with the Marvel films? Is it cool to like Marvel? What is cool these days? AM I NOT COOL?! Wait, I don't care. Man you could not pay me enough money to go back to those years when we cared about EVERYTHING. I like aging. Wait though, how far off is 30? I should really create a mood board. What's the cut off age for Tik Tok? I need to tailor my Spotify more. These daily mixes keep forcing Jason Derulo on me and that is NOT my 2022 vibe. Oh I need to finish that New Year article for TLC, I should do that today.
Welcome to my brain. This is the new normal, not too dissimilar from the old normal to be honest, but I've noticed one terrifying thought. It seems that these past couple of years, I have been assigning worth to each day depending on Covid's presence and current impact.
Is a Covid day somehow less valuable than a non-Covid day? Is it? I realise very quickly that God is still God on a Covid day. People still need love on a Covid day. The homeless are still homeless, injustice is still injustice, and importantly, the victory of the Cross is still victory. Christ is undefeated. This might sound very simple, and it is a fundamental reality of faith, but here's the real question:
Are we living each day in 2020, 21, 22 undefeated?
Are we carrying the Spirit with us, even knowing that we won't leave the house? Are we treating Zoom meetings and emails as opportunities to show the love of Christ? Are we workers in the field or have we hung up our tools for the time being?
It has taken me a while to come to this realisation; that our existence is not on pause. Our systems and infrastructures, that we have grown so dependent on, have taken the hit - and we're so accustomed to predictability that when our systems are challenged, we can forget what it is to live instinctively. When functionality is harder to define and efficiency is not always at our fingertips, how do we possibly gauge success?!
What would 2022 look like if I had 1 single marker of success:
That by my life, others would know Christ.
Covid or not. Things going my way or not. Joy or grief. Peace or anxiety...one signpost, a standard to live by, the value of each of my days, all defined by this goal. What would each day look like then?
"...for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me." - Philippians 4:11-13