This was a long week for everyone for various reasons. It was a long week at the end of a long month in the midst of a long year. Giving up, throwing up our hands, or giving into depression isn’t an option. As women, we set the tone in the home more than anyone.
I’m writing this today to encourage each one of us to buck up for the sake of our loved ones. More than encourage you, I’m here to give us all a kick in the rear end. We might feel tired, overwhelmed, discouraged. or fearful. So much doesn’t make sense. But we cannot control any of that. We can only control what happens in our homes and our response to life around us. In the midst of these difficult times, we’re responsible for walking with Christ, praying, and loving those God has entrusted to our care.
Giving up isn’t an option. Giving into our fears isn’t an option. Allowing our emotions to spill over and harm our loved ones isn’t an option. I don’t know who needs to hear these things today, but someone does. I had no plan to write this post today, but here we are.
We’re not the first people to go through difficult times. We’re not the first people to face war, pestilence, or failed leaders. We’re not the first people to witness apostasy in the church. We’re not the first people to witness betrayal, lies, and treason. We’re here today because our ancestors survived some of the worst things that have happened on the earth.
If you want a sobering read, consider this from Black Death and Abrupt Earth Changes in the 14th century. I found this article while doing research about Grand Solar Minimum.
Death toll of the 1300-1350 crisis
In 1969, Philip Ziegler accepted an average plague death toll in Europe of about 33 percent, or between 20,000,000 and 25,000,000,
The period from 1300-1350 saw the death of at least 50% of the population of Europe. In China, where the Black Death is said to have originated, a loss around half of the population is attributed just to the Black Death alone (going from around 123 million to around 65 million). In the early 2000s, Benedictow presented an overall European population of around 80,000,000 and plague death toll of about 60 percent overall in Europe, which is a total of about 48,000,000 dead. [21]
We note, that the ultimate death toll is still controversial, most historians agree that the Great Famine of 1315 already claimed at least 30% of Europe’s population and then the Great Plague from 1347 onward, claimed at least another 30%. Assuming that the population couldn’t recover in just 35 years after the famine, the second event of mass casualties would take then 30% of the remaining 70%, amounting to a death toll of at least 51%; if we use Benedictow numbers, we arrive at 72% within just 35 years. In Southern Europe, specially along the coastlines, the situation was even worse. Speaking only of the 4 years of the Black Death, some scholars believe that “In Mediterranean Europe, where the plague ran for about four years consecutively, it was probably between 70 and 75% of the total population”.[22] In England, the death rate was estimated at between 45- 60%.[23]
A musician at the papal Court in Avignon, Louis Heylingen (sanctus) of Beeringen, writes about an even greater mortality in Avignon and the neighboring parts:
“(…) for at Marseilles all the gates of the city, with the exception of two small ones, are now closed, for there, four- fifths of the inhabitants are dead.” [24]
We’ll examine below what the proximity to the sea and the various accounts of foul odors emitted from the sea have to do with this distribution pattern. Also in Palestine, (costal) Gaza seams to have been hardest hit, Ibu Battuta, Abu Abdullah (1304-1368) reports he found Gaza “depopulated due to the prior outbreak there(…) only 60 to 80 notaries remained alive.”[25]
To put these numbers into perspective: WW II caused the greatest loss of human life in recent history. According to conservative estimates, about 60 million people were killed in World War II, which was about 3% of the 1940 world population (of about 2.3 billion). The German population suffered the greatest loss of people in proportion to population, the death toll is disputed to be between 4.2 million[26] and 7.3 million[27] civilians and military death, amounting to 6 – 10% of the German population.
So, proportionally, the Great Famine of 1315- 1320 alone killed 3 to 10 times as many people of the European population as did all of WW II. We may ask ourselves how the enormous death toll of the 1315 Famine is usually only marginally taken into account in the discussion of the Black Death period.
Somehow, by the grace of God, our ancestors survived all that.
All of it.
You and I are here today despite all the pestilence, famine, and war. We owe it to those who struggled before us and those who will come after us to buck up and press on.
Things may get darker before they get better. Be a light to the world starting in your own home. Laugh. Laugh a lot. Cook good food, Read good books. Talk in positive terms. Shelter your children from the worst of it. Shelter yourself from the worst of it. Make prudent choices for your home.
Pray. Be in God’s Word multiple times a day. Leave your Bible open on the table, the desk, the counter, or wherever you spend most of your time. Read it multiple times a day, even 60 seconds at a time if that is all you can do.
Turn off the demonic television. Yes, that’s what I said. Turn off the profanity, fornication, violence, perversion, and every other thing that causes you to focus on sin and the flesh rather than the light of Christ. Stop giving yourself, your money, and your time to a culture that hates and despises everything you believe in.
If you need a mental break and need to escape a bit, make it uplifting and beautiful. There is nothing wrong with watching a good movie or reading a good book to give your mind a break while living in difficult times. But choose wisely. Choose something beautiful. Add light to your life, not more demonic garbage.
Make one hard choice. I don’t care what it is. Choose to do something hard today. Then choose to do something hard the next day. I can’t tell you what it is in your particular situation. What is hard for you might not be hard for me and vice versa. But do something. Make a hard choice. Train yourself to give up garbage that doesn’t have any meaning. Speak the truth where it isn’t popular. I’m not even going to make suggestions because I don’t want to influence anyone. Ask God. Your conscience probably already spoke to you when I encouraged you to do this. Start making hard choices so making hard choices becomes easier. It may be very helpful in the days, weeks, and months ahead.
We are all weary in one way or another. We’re tired of being lied to. We’re tired of tyrants at every level. We’re tired of people hurting our children. We’re tired of division. We’re tired of apostate church leaders and churches. We’re tired of evil people getting away with their crimes. We’re all so weary of it all. But we simply must pray fervently, rest in Christ, and push beyond it. Our loved ones need us to do so.
Shining Your Light in a Dark World
Good post, Sallie. I was just telling my husband the other day that I’m not sure why we always think that we will be spared from going through difficult times in this country. Probably because we are afraid of the outcomes – most of us know our history well and how history can and does repeat itself so that’s not a very uplifting thing to think about. But, like you, I’m determined to make our home a place of where we can be together and share food, good movies, games, laughter………… I DO get weary of everything out there. But I have to remind myself to pull up the bootstraps, roll up my sleeves, and just get on with it!
Thank you for your forcefulness! I like people who just tell it like it is and then try to “spur one another on in love”. God bless you and your family in these days. Mary S.
Hi Mary,
David and I have had the same kind of conversations. We have lived in a fortunate time and place to this point in our history. Most people cannot fathom losing half of the population to something and yet it has happened numerous times throughout history. I pray God will spare us due to the many people in this country who do love Him and pray for His mercy. I think there are more than we are led to believe. Just one more lie we have been fed for the past few decades. Yes, God would be justified in leaving us to suffer the consequences, but I do think there are many believers who have been pleading for a long time for Him to intervene. I pray He does and soon. We need a genuine revival in this country. Not a fake one or a hyped-up man-made one. A real moving of the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes people need a soft word of encouragement. Today I felt compelled to speak forcefully, hopefully still with love. The world needs us so much, starting with those in our homes and circle of influence.
Hugs,
Sallie
Thank you Sallie for this post.
Joan,Marion and Marilyn
Hi Marilyn,
You’re welcome. Thank you for taking the time to say hello!
Sallie
I think your post is exactly what we need to hear today, Sallie. Thank you for being bold and sharing it.
Cheryl
Hi Cheryl,
I’m glad it came at the right time. We all need to be bold right now.
Sallie
Well said, Sallie. Thank you.
Thank you, Pam.
Sallie
I think there was more than one of us who needed this post – I for one did! Thank you for this reminded to not dwell on the evil but to dwell on the good and uplift our families.
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Philippians 4:6-8
Hi Bethany,
Thank you for your comment and the Scripture. Yes, every day we need to make the choice to dwell on the good, beautiful, lovely, pure, and virtuous.
Sallie
Sally, this is a fantastic post… and exactly the inspiration that I needed to hear. Thank you for taking this role and being a source of light yourself 🙂
I’ve noticed this with a number of your posts: like this post, I’d love to read them over and over. But bookmarking them isn’t the same as having a paper copy that’s more integrated into the mechanics of daily life. Have you considered collecting some of your inspirational posts, putting them on some beautiful paper, and offering them for sale? I know I’d love to have this post on paper so I could tack it on a board or put it inside a folder in my binder… then I’d be able to read it, or parts of it, daily.
Renee
Hi Renee,
Thank you for your kind words. On my list of many things I wanted to do this summer was creating downloadable versions of some of my posts and adding more artwork to my shop. That all came to a screeching halt when David picked up this contract work (now in its 13th week). I’ve also thought about self-publishing books around certain themes. I have an ebook about differently wired children half written that I realized would make an excellent video course that people could take any time. That was one of the reasons we moved to new hosting so I could host the class myself and not have to use a service.
So many ideas.
So I want you to know I saw your comment and have thought about it repeatedly. I hope to be able to do more things like that soon.
Sallie
Amen to all of this! Thank you, dear Sallie. Be strong in the Lord. It’s encouraging to me in NC to hear these words from my sister in Christ in Michigan. God’s family is out there.
Hi Karen,
Thank you for your kind words. We have sisters in Christ all over the nation and the world. Our prayers and bold words are powerful. We all need to be using them every day.
Good to hear from you!
Sallie
Very true and empowering, Sally! I so needed to read this. Thank you! Reading this is becoming a part of my morning routine to help me get my day and focus started on the right track. Have done several hard things over the last week. Thank you for the prompting :).
Hi Laineybug!
I’m cheering for you doing hard things! Thank you for encouraging all of us by saying so. We need to hear it from other people.
Sallie
Thank you, Sally. I feel like I’m in an angry mood all the time. I know I need to just shut the news off. But at the same time I don’t want to stop pointing out the hypocrisy of our “leaders,” the madness of the fake news stories, and the hatred they’re fomenting between people. I find myself wishing we could go back to pre-Iphone days, when you didn’t know what anyone else thought about ANYTHING. But you’re right — we’re here and this is the way it is. And we have to lead our children through this with joy and perseverance. I thank God for our church and for the like-minded around us who are speaking up more and more.
Hi Amy,
This is a very difficult time to walk that fine line between being informed and turning it off. I was speaking with someone who expressed that she feels a need to be informed because she is keeping many other people informed who don’t have time to keep up on things the way she does. It is stunning how many people simply do not have any idea about basic, verifiable facts related to everything going on.
I think we have to do whatever we can. I’ve not added anything much to the forums in the past two weeks because I just have too much going on. But I keep adding things to the Telegram widget in the sidebar. We all have to do what we can do. The Lord knows our limits.
I believe a lot of us are angry and much of that anger is righteous anger for what has been done. I pray daily that God will deal with those doing evil.
Romans 12:19 – Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.”
I daily look forward to God repaying those doing evil. Who it is and what He does is up to Him. I just ask Him daily to do it as soon as possible.
Sallie