Binge Watching While Sheltering

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:11-13

The shelter in place has forced us to entered our Holy Weekend in an unprecedented way. We practice social distancing, while we learn new ways to connect with one another.

As we continue in our much-needed social distancing, I challenge us all to practice distancing from distractions. With so many postponed sporting events, movie releases and concerts, it’s easy to seek other forms of entertainment. We turn to television, computers, social media, tablets and phones to pass the time. A shelter in place provides opportunities to lose ourselves in front of a screen.

*By the Waters of Babylon*, Gebhard Fugel

After a long day of telecommuting or making sure our kids are doing their distance learning, we feel mentally stretched out. After another day of isolation from our friends, children and parents we feel depressed. After another day of economic uncertainty, we feel anxious. Electronic media can become an outlet.

Let’s resist these temptations, dwell in God’s Word and pray for things that are far better:

We need to experience God’s Love (Isaiah 54:10; Jeremiah 31:3; 1 John 4:9).

We need God to increase our knowledge of God and His kingdom (Proverbs 1:7; Proverbs 2:6).

We need God to give us strength when we are at our weakest (Psalm 46:1-3; Isaiah 41:10).

We need God to give us hope and endurance (James 1:12; Romans 12:21).

This Holy Weekend let’s turn away from our distractions and look at the cross where God demonstrated His love. Power down the devices and experience the power that raised Christ from the dead.

About Corey Sharpe

Where do we get our beliefs? Three theological perspectives have significantly shaped my Christian identity: Evangelicalism, the early Methodist tradition and liberation theology. From my coming to faith in a Baptist church and throughout my education in a Baptist school and college, I was nurtured by convictions that emphasized a spiritual rebirth, a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and the centrality of the Bible. Even when I disagree with certain aspects of evangelicalism, it has deeply influenced my sense of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. My seminary studies spawned my interest in early Methodism, particularly its approach to spiritual formation. Its leaders were convinced that only a foundation of doctrine and discipline would lead to a meaningful transformation of the heart and mind. In other words, having the mind of Christ enables me to be more like Christ. Life in a suburban culture obscures the increasing gap between the poor and rich, as well as the Bible’s close identification with the poor. My doctoral work in socio-cultural context exposed me to liberation theology, which helps me see redemptive history as a history of oppressed groups, written from the perspective of the powerless, about a God who is actively involved with the poor in their struggles. I am now the pastor at Huntingtown United Methodist Church in Calvert County, Maryland. Together my wife and I are raising 4 young theologians.

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