We are a society that is super busy. We have full calendars and hectic routines that fill our everyday lives. Today Indiana’s official Stay-at-Home order begins, but many of us have been in our homes with our children for over a week now. While it is easy to become stir crazy inside the four walls of your home, it’s important to find joy in being with your family.

Look at the Little Things

Take a look around. Do you smell the fresh aroma of coffee? Do you hear the laughter of your children? Are you outside and see the newly budding sights of spring? Savor these these things. Instead of focusing on the big stuff that is happening in our world, focus on the little things that are right in front of you. Remember also that God sees the small details in our lives too. Jesus says in Luke 12:7 “The very hairs on your head are numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.”

Family Dinners

Busy schedules can often times lead to quick dinners from a drive through or families eating dinner at different times. Being in quarantine is giving us the opportunity to have dinner as a family. Use these family dinner times as a time to chat with your kids and your spouse. For the next couple of weeks we don’t have to rush into our bedtime routines or hurry up to prepare for the next day. We can relax and savor the moments of dinner time.

Enjoy the Outdoors

Spring is currently in full bloom in southern Indiana. We now have perfect excuse to go outside and enjoy the beauty of it. Take your family outdoors and go for a walk. Have your children play and jump in freshly made rain puddles or draw on the sidewalk with chalk. According to the Indiana DNR website, all state parks are open during the Indiana Stay-at-Home order. This means Hoosiers can go hiking, boating, fishing, and biking with an added bonus of all entrance fees are temporarily suspended. The areas that are closed in the parks are nature centers, playgrounds, shelter houses, and visitor centers. As with everything these days, please remember to practice safe social distancing while you are there.

More Family Time

Many times we feel guilty for not having enough time to spend with our families during our daily busy lives. With the state Stay-at-Home order in place, we now have the time to do all the activities with our families we’ve felt guilty for in the past. It’s a great time to put a puzzle together, play a board game, build a blanket fort, or do a craft with the whole family. Be sure to add some laughter into your day too. Play a game of who can make the silliest face or turn your living room into a silly dance contest.

Restore your Relationship with God

God wants to have an intimate relationship with us and sometime we let life get in the way of that. Use this time to restore your relationship with God. Rely on Him during this uncertain time. Seek His provision and promises through prayer and studying His word. The bible says in 2 Corinthian 1:9, “In fact, we felt as if we were under the sentence of death. But that happened so that we would not depend on ourselves but on God.” Let us put our hope in Him and create a relationship with him that will not only carry us through the pandemic, but through the rest of our lives.

Additional Resources:

For Bible Studies and Devotionals: https://www.bible.com/

For Indiana State Park Information: https://www.in.gov/dnr/parklake/

For Online Church Services and More: http://www.bluegrassumc.org/

Follow BG Kids – Children’s Ministry at: https://www.facebook.com/BGKidsBGUMC/

Subscribe to the Blue Grass YouTube Channel at: https://bit.ly/2JbmGdF