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Spiritual Sandwich: Love Over Fear

By Sean Neades, SSP Tsaile 2020 Site Director

It can be difficult to see or identify sources of love, provision, and comfort during times of uncertainty. Consider the ways the love and provision of God’s people is still evident in our community even now, through:

  • Doctors, nurses, and medical staff
  • Grocery store clerks, food banks, and farmers
  • Teachers, school staff, and emergency childcare workers

Who else do you see showing God’s love during this time, in your life and in our world?

 

“On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’ And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped.

But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?’

And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’” 

– Mark 4:35-41 (NRSV)

Consider the following:

  • How do you express your fears to God? To your community?
    • How do you express your love?
  • How do you experience God or the divine during times of trouble?
    • Do you feel God is with you? Asleep?
  • What expectations of God do you have during times of trouble?
  • How can we express love and provide comfort to others using our own gifts during this season?

In times of fear, we are given ample opportunities to respond from a place of love. You may have a special skill or gift that can assist those with tangible needs. Whether you pray, meditate, connect with the divine through nature, or see God on the faces of your friends and loved ones, you can always share a kind word with someone or lift up the needs you see before you.

As you go on with your week, do not lose hope in and love for our communities. It is what drives us to a better tomorrow.

 

Editor’s Note: As we navigate unfamiliar times, SSP is working hard to live out our mission in a way that safely and creatively promotes love over fear. To keep up to date with our program decisions in light of COVID-19, sign up for our e-newsletter.