Living in Light of the Resurrection

By: Dan Seale

This series of blog posts is designed to help us understand how other people in different seasons or places in life are experiencing life during this pandemic.   Not only can we learn from others, but we can develop our ability to understand and share the feelings of others, empathy, an important relational skill.  This week Corrie Franklin is sharing her experience with us. I am sure you will appreciate her candor and her humor.

Scene from “The Last Man on Earth”

“While being single may mean that I live alone, it does not mean that I live in isolation. Whether you are single or married with kids, now more than ever being a part of a community is vital. I can honestly say that I have not felt alone during quarantine because of the many calls, social distance walks, texts, and connections our Redeemer family and my own family have maintained. Each one of us are the hands and feet of Jesus right now, and that is the beauty of being a part of God’s family.

— Corrie Franklin

1. How have things changed at home, if at all, due to these social distancing measures and “normal” life being disrupted?

I’d be lying if I said being single during a global pandemic has been easy. The same weekend that Durham went into a stay-at-home order, my roommate moved out and got married. Instant fear set in because long periods of isolation have a long history of anxiety and depression for me. While I may not be homeschooling children while working (hats off to all you mom and dads out there with school-age children), the pandemic has completely altered my sense of “normal life.”

As an extrovert, “social distancing” may as well be called “cutting off oxygen.” Some days I find myself relating to The Last Man on Earth. In the show, there’s an episode where the main character (Phil) assumes he is the last man on earth and he draws faces on and names a series of balls (a play on the movie Castaway) and talks to them. While I may not be talking to a volleyball named Gary, I sometimes find myself relating to Phil.

Some changes during quarantine have actually been pretty great.  I get to sit and drink my coffee in my pajamas every morning and watch the birds come to my birdfeeder. I don’t miss scarfing down granola bars on my way to work and spilling coffee on my lap. I’m cooking new recipes, getting to know my neighbors, and spending time outside. By God’s grace, I am slowly overcoming my fear of being stuck at home for long periods of time and I have been thankful that I have not experienced any depression flares during this time.

But I really miss going to work and I miss church. Normally, April and May are my busiest months of the school year. I am a musician and teacher. This year I was supposed to take my high schoolers to New York City. In addition to school concerts, I should have had every weekend booked with weddings, concerts, trips, conducting gigs and youth activities. Having a blank calendar is surreal and carries a sense of loss of my identity at times. I basically went from being a music teacher to a (not very good) tech support specialist overnight. If you’ve never received a hundred emails a day from teenagers, you are missing out.

2. What have you learned about yourself during this time?

While I don’t fear living alone, I think one of the reasons I tend to dread isolation is that it forces me to slow down and think. During isolation my brain tends to turn into a constant stream of insecurities, fears and random songs from my childhood. Why do those songs from Barney come back to haunt me 25 years later? When I am busy, my mind can focus on others more easily. When I’m home and by myself, the focus turns on me. It’s a lot easier to be distracted with work and activities instead of my own shortcomings.

Ultimately, what quarantine has done is show my true heart. I suddenly have plenty of time to spend in the word and prayer, but I still choose not to. I have more time to call people and ask them how they are doing, but I frequently retreat to the comforts of my TV shows or other distractions. So all along when I’ve given myself the excuse that I’m “too busy” or “too tired” to do the things I should, the reality is that my heart is drawn to distraction and comforts, and I put God on the back burner.

While being single and living alone may not include kids testing my patience or other people invading my space, the ultimate struggle during quarantine is universal: we are broken people prone to wander from God, and that manifests in different ways for each of us. I run by trying to control my circumstances or by simply hiding in my own comforts. Some days the weight of the world is too heavy, and it is easier to push it away and pretend that I am fine on my own. Just as Jonah was overwhelmed by the idea of following God’s plan for his life and trying to run (we all know how great that turned out), I find myself running from God’s comfort and trying to create my own.

Jonah 1:3 “But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.”

3. We just celebrated Easter a couple of weeks ago. How could the resurrection change how we live and interact with others during this pandemic time?

 COVID-19 has changed a lot of the interactions with people around me. As much as I hate not having church in-person, one of the positive outcomes of streaming church online is that I have been able to share the service with my Facebook friends. One of my co-workers surprised me the other day when he told me he has been watching every one of our Sunday services and how much they have given him comfort during these uncertain times. I had no idea he was even watching. A benefit of being single during this time is that I have had the time to grocery shop for some families who are currently unable to go to the store. One of these families does not profess faith in Jesus but sent a “God bless you” text after receiving one of my deliveries sponsored by our community group.

I have personally experienced Jesus through the connection of my community group, youth group and friends and family. While being single may mean that I live alone, it does not mean that I live in isolation. Whether you are single or married with kids, now more than ever being a part of a community is vital. I can honestly say that I have not felt alone during quarantine because of the many calls, social distance walks, texts, and connections our Redeemer family and my own family have maintained. Each one of us are the hands and feet of Jesus right now, and that is the beauty of being a part of God’s family.