Andrew Murray and Disney Plus

I got Disney plus because we're all at home right now in self-quarantine and it seemed like a good idea. After a day of browsing and indulging and reliving memories from my childhood, I took the quiet at the end of the day to read my Bible, and then to read a little book my dad gave me a few years ago. It's called "The Believer's Daily Renewal" by Andrew Murray. The one chapter I read of that was a rich fountain and it spoke to me so deeply.  It was like I'd been snacking on candy all day, and then i finally got to sit down and eat a real meal.
It was a wake-up call for me in some ways. I've been trying to implement better habits in my life, especially regarding spiritual practices, and I was kind of on a roll until the corona virus started consuming our lives. When the governor told us all to stay home, I got caught up in the worries, the quick turnaround that needed to happen with plans changing, with getting the kids satisfied and busy, and with planning how to exist for the next few weeks.
What I knew but hadn't admitted to myself yet, was that I was consuming way too much media. Social media, news media, entertainment media, etc. I was swinging wide between devouring information about the virus spread, to self-medicating the worries through distraction and amusement. There's no middle ground right now.
Except there needs to be. And really, I just need to plant myself on the actual ground of Jesus and stop swinging at all. That's what Andrew Murray reminded me late Friday night when i stopped to breathe. I can keep on swinging and wandering, worrying, ignoring, distancing, fighting, criticizing, and jumping on bandwagons. Or I can rest.
Rest does not come in those hours of TV consumption and amusement. It comes from restoring our souls in the life-giving words of God Himself, who controls the world and who loves us and suffers with us and cares for us. It comes in connecting to Him and believing in his promises and practicing his truth.
Media is like junk food that makes you feel full but doesn't nourish you. It tricks you into feeling like you've done something productive. It makes you think you know stuff that you don't know. It is meant to be consumed in small doses, but we've been filling our days with it. It doesn't actually ease our worries or heal our tired and anxious souls. It just defers the feelings and lets them grow. Work, relationship, and communion with God are the actual things that nourish and heal our souls. This is a time when I want to nourish my whole self, body, mind and spirit. I don't want to settle for junk food and candy when God is offering me true sustenance.
So I'm attempting to fill my days with more than media. I'm taking time every day to memorize some Bible verses with my kids, to read something that isn't on a screen, to write a reflection or at least read some Bible, and to pray. More than ever, I need to be pressing into the Maker, the Sustainer and the Giver of Life.
That is the basic plan for this blog. To share the ways I'm doing that, and to share the things I'm learning as I do. I hope it will encourage you and help you keep practicing His ways.