Coping with social isolation through worship.
There have been countless blogs on how to cope with the anxiety and depression we feel when coping with this global pandemic and being isolated in our homes away from our jobs, friends, and family. I am practicing many of these coping skills and I teach them every day to my clients.
The ultimate coping skill
Today, I want to talk a bit about what I consider to be my ultimate and prefered way that I break free from my worries, sadnesses, and disappointments. For me as a believer and follower of Jesus, worship is what always brings me to a deeper, more peaceful place. The word “worship” is from an old English word that simply means to “ascribe worth,” i.e. WORTHship.
Many of you know that I’m a musician and have studied voice and other instruments throughout my life and I have a very eclectic taste in music (from opera to country!). Music has always been my path to peace and the part of the church experience that keeps me coming back. Because the Church has such a deep connection to music it has been interesting to see how each community is coming together in creative ways to ascribe worth to the God they serve.
Shout out to my home church
I think it is so important to engage in your local community through a church. My home team church is New Life Christian Fellowship in Petaluma. This is where my wife and I worship on a weekly basis and even though we miss weekly in person services we have stayed connected with this community online and have enjoyed the creative way they have managed to provide a worship experience to the congregation while each band member performs from their own home and it is combined digitally for their online services each Sunday.
Shout out to others
Two other churches that I have a personal connection with that have also been an encouragement through this season are Cornerstone SF and Reality SF. Both have provided daily online encouragement to their community and broader audiences and have deeply touched me during this time.
The ultimate Easter moment
I’ll conclude by sharing with you a video made by a group of churches in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as a blessing to all for Easter 2020. For me, this virtual choir is a picture of what I hope for the church to be more like in the future.
This video really stirred deep emotion in me and to be honest brought me to my knees and tears flowed as I watched churches coming together (which they rarely do unfortunately) in a beautiful display of ethnic and theological diversity for one purpose – to bring a message of HOPE from the one they follow, Jesus.
I hope you enjoy this musical experience whether you follow Jesus or not. If you are not a follower and none of this makes sense, I encourage you to find a friend who will share their faith journey with you. You can also contact a local pastor or ask me for a contact.
Here it is, better known as the Pittsburgh Blessing. I hope you take 8 minutes out of your BUSY lives to watch this and receive the message.