At first, Mary wasn’t sure she’d done much worth sharing.
She spent the pandemic like a lot of us: away from people.
We persisted, she agreed, and within seconds of interviewing Mary it was clear: she has plenty to share!
“I hear people feeling excited about the world opening back up and they hope we’re going back to ‘normal life’, but one woman I was talking with said recently she’s not sure she wants to go back to that life. It was stressful and chaotic and frenetic and too busy,” Mary shared.
When the pandemic hit your community, did you feel that release from the pressures of what we knew as ‘normal’? Our post-pandemic team likes to say ‘the world has changed, and so have we.’
Could part of that change be leaving behind some of what we once saw as ‘normal’?
Mary continued: “The pandemic has sifted us out and left us with little bits. As the pandemic recedes, we’re left to look at these bits and pieces and decide what we want to keep or discard. It’s given us a chance to reprioritize and refine our lives and to examine what it is that’s TRULY important and worth keeping in our lives.”
Notice Mary didn’t say the pandemic has been easy. We grieve with any and all who have suffered during this pandemic, and we also look for hope wherever we might find it. In this pain, we see sifting. Pruning. We see opportunity for growth and Kingdom-sized shalom breaking through all around us as we, like a chiropractor, pop a few things into a healthier place.
Mary emphasized that peacemaking can’t be seen as any particular activity or event. “Everyday peacemaking is literally every day. It’s an endless inhale and exhale and, over time, you don’t have to wonder how to respond to various situations because you’ve been practicing that Way already. Every single day.”
So, as a thank you to Mary for choosing to share and to all of you for reading the stories of these incredible, everyday peacemakers, we close with some final pandemic wisdom from Mary:
“Breathe in God’s presence, breathe out those things God has for you today. Ask what the Holy Spirit might be saying to you, and ask ‘who am I becoming?’—the becoming happens as we practice peace each day.”
Author: Matt Willingham
Matt Willingham is a writer, photographer, and content creator with over ten years experience living and working in some of the hardest-hit conflict zones in the world. He and his wife, Cayla, are now based in San Diego where they’re raising three little peacemakers and working to promote empathy and understanding in their community.
@matt.willingham