Do you ever have seasons where when you actually stop to think or slow down long enough to process, you realize that time has been marching on but in the move of it all it really seems as if it’s been at a stand still? That’s a statement that some of us would agree with completely and then for others we may say we haven’t experienced that in the last year & a half. Either way we probably wouldn’t be wrong. Or would we?

We can agree that life came to an abrupt halt March 2020 and has felt like an extended spring break that really still hasn’t ended. We could say that everything slowed to a snail’s pace or it stopped all together. Schools went virtual which meant no early morning hustles, commutes or afternoon activities. People who are fortunate enough to work from home have been doing so and for others employment ended. Large group gatherings are so 2019 and buying a ticket to a sporting event now means you have access to the live stream and will more than likely be able to find your face on one of the jumbo trons around the arenas. So, in all of this it’s slowed down tremendously but why then do we have to stop and process all that occurred last year & a half?

Now let’s fast forward to April 2021. We are 13 months into this global pandemic thing and significant changes are being made. A major contributor to change is the vaccine. We have all had to make decisions on whether to vaccinate or not. The decisions have come easier for some than others and still there are those who just can’t decide. One thing we can all agree on, though, is that with the scientific development of the vaccine it is bringing about change and opportunity. People are beginning to open their doors and feel comfortable to step outside in public. Hand shakes are happening again and not just fist bumps. Churches that weren’t already opened back up are opening their doors and the schools that have been empty for a year are finally having students back on campus. Yes, for those in areas where your schools didn’t skip a beat, there are others who have been virtual this entire school year. Why now? Why all of a sudden? The vaccine?!?

Side note… there are so many angles, views, ideas, beliefs, and opinions about all of this and the past 13 months. I acknowledge that. Some families have been affected by it worse than others and some families haven’t skipped a beat. All of it makes me so incredibly sad and breaks my heart. This post is not intended to share my opinions or thoughts on any of it and it’s definitely not intended to hear yours. It is solely being written as a point of documentation of what has occurred over the past 13 months. It may be cancelled and for some, the upper portion of the blog may cause anger or whatnots. All I can say is we have to check our spirits and make sure we are aligned with the Father, THE Holy Spirit, The Maker of heaven and earth, and insure that our actions and words bring Him glory and are fulfilling the purpose of knowing Him and making Him known. So, back to our main road.

I really was one of those persons who thought the intended 2 week extended spring break back in 2020 was going to be marvelous and then we would all resume to what was our normal scheduled programming. So for me, this entire thing has really thrown me off my A game. Even in all of that, the Lord still remains in control and He is still good. Let’s talk about that. Let’s talk about what #raising3rushes in a perfect sinful world has been up to for the past 13 months.

As you may remember, Rushes moved to Virginia end of January 2020. Just in time to get settled in a rental and kids in school. Little did we know that on campus would be short lived and we would all end up back at home together to finish out the year virtually. At the end of the 2019-2020 school year, the 3E’s had attended school in public, homeschool, private and virtual learning. With everything up in the air, as a family we decided we’d take 2020-2021 school year to simmer and hopefully find a new east coast Virginian groove. We decided to homeschool. We have dabbled with it off and on in the past and I have taught on various levels of education so I knew that I could, but honestly wasn’t sure how we’d all make it.

It’s May 2021 and I can tell you we survived! We have all lived to tell about it. Some days we had loads of laughs and some days tears were streaming from ALL of our eyes. Because of the season, we didn’t do as many field trips as we would have liked, but we grew together as a family and learned how to be people who could adapt and bounce back fairly quickly. Our children grew in ways that some adults I know still haven’t grown in. Children really are resilient!

It has been neat to see our individual hearts rest in not only “knowing” in our head that Jesus is Lord and is in ultimate control, but truly wrestling with Jesus is Lord and is in ultimate control in our hearts. And then experiencing how our individual hearts joined together as one in this idea. The confidence levels of each of us (my kids specifically) have grown exponentially. Confidence in their own ability to ROCK their end of year testing. Confidence in who they are as a human being and what they have to offer instead of just trying to figure out how they fit into a group of peers. Confidence in believing the fact that when we truly submit our lives to the Lord, that the God of the universe will honor that and use it/us to accomplish His mission. This one has been so cool to see and hear during our family conversations. We may be a little more in tune with listening to their hearts on this one since our family experienced a major cross country move 7 weeks before pandemic, but none the less our kids are seeing through the lenses of “our lives are not our own and we are called to places for seasons and reasons and when our mission(s) are accomplished, He reassigns us and that is ok.” But for now we will grow where we are planted not holding onto to what was in the past or clinging to what is in the future but living and loving in what is the present.

What have you learned over the course of the past year? When you stop and think back, can you see where you have grown?

“But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] Will gain new strength and renew their power; They will lift up their wings [and rise up close to God] like eagles [rising toward the sun]; They will run and not become weary, They will walk and not grow tired.”
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭40:31‬ ‭AMP‬‬
https://www.bible.com/1588/isa.40.31.amp