Cathy Horning has a tender heart toward the Lord, receptive to His voice and eager to respond with trust and obedience. In this Spiritual Life UPGRADE, she writes about how she prays the Lord will transform her life because of the coronavirus.

“At the writing of this post,” Cathy says, “our beloved California is waiting on edge for the surge of COVID-19.”

Like many other Christ-followers, I (Dawn) have been contemplating the changes God might want to make in my life as the crisis of the coronavirus passes. Cathy encourages us to make those thoughts more concrete through prayer and intentional choices.

Cathy continues . . .

By the time you read this, hopefully, we will have passed the crisis, and life as we knew it will begin to get back to normal.

Although, my prayer is that we will never be normal again.

COVID-19 took most of us by surprise. It turned our lives upside down, at best, as it devastated hundreds of thousands, at its worst.

To be honest, besides the fear of sickness and death, finances and what the future would hold, my family was part of the population who were merely inconvenienced by the stay-at-home, shelter-in-place, six-foot-separation quarantine that our leaders ordered.

However besides their disruption to my days, these restrictions revealed a lot about my character, my spiritual condition, as well as how unprepared I was.

My prayer is that once the constraints are lifted and our freedoms are restored, my life will have been upgraded by the COVID-19 Refiner’s fire.

I hope I will be:

• Less set in my familiar and comfortable ways,
• More Christ-like in my attitude and actions, and
• More prepared and fully equipped for future curve-balls, crises and trials that will come our way.   

1. I want to be MORE GRATEFUL.

I hope I will never again take for granted everyday conveniences like stocked grocery store shelves, hand sanitizer, cleaning supplies, toilet paper and the people who make it readily available for us all.

I never again want to assume I will always have the freedom of hugs, coffee shop visits, and family times and outings.

2. I want to be A WILLING SERVANT.

Being stuck at home revealed to me how selfish I am, and how rigid my routine.

I want to be willing to serve others, as if I was serving Jesus Himself, in big ways and small ones, in the comfortable and, especially, in the uncomfortable and inconvenient.

I don’t want to grumble and complain that I must cook and clean more, because there are people at home—all the time—to take care of.

3. I want to be MORE PREPARED and PROACTIVE.

I intend to be more conscientious about and purposeful to not shut out the needs of others, which I realized can happen tucked away safely in the cocoon of my own world.

I will strive to be more connected with my neighbors, to reach out to those in need, and to be aware of and available to help those who are homebound, sick, or hurting.

I pray to walk so closely with Jesus that I can be used to meet the unspoken and unmet needs of others. 

When life returns to normal, I pray there will be an upgrade in my life.

What do I want to see?

• I don’t want to be haphazard and wasteful.
• I don’t want to be resentful or disgruntled when I’m asked to serve in inconvenient ways, times and places.
• And, I don’t want to close my eyes to or look away from others' needs.
• I don’t want to hang my hope and trust in everything working well or going right or staying the same. Nor do I want to live in fear. Instead, I will live my life filled with faith, led by the Spirit, and more prepared and purposeful to share my faith and my life.

Luke 12:35-37, 42-44 (TPT) says,

'Be prepared for action at a moment’s notice. Be like the servants who anticipate their master’s return…They are ready to unlock and open the door for him at a moment’s notice. What great joy is ahead for the awakened ones who are waiting for the Master’s return!...

A trustworthy and thoughtful manager who understands the ways of his master will be given a ministry of responsibility in his master’s house, serving others exactly what they need at just the right time. And when the master returns, he will find that his servant has served him well. I can promise you, he will be given a great reward and will be placed as an overseer of everything the master owns.'

Today, and every day—disaster or not—I hope and pray my upgrades from COVID-19 are that:

• I will be more grateful;
• I will be a willing servant; and
• I will be prepared and proactive.  

What upgrade has COVID-19 made in your life?

Cathy Horning has been a women’s ministry leader, Bible Study teacher, speaker and writer for almost three decades. She loves the Word of God. Nothing brings her greater joy than encouraging women how to walk in God's ways. Cathy is a popular speaker, blogger and writer, as well as a beloved wife to her husband of 37 years, mom to four, grammy to 13, and spiritual mom to many. She is the author of Letters from a Mother's Heart—Timeless Truths from One Mom's Journey. Read more about her on her website.

Graphic, "Thank You," courtesy of Chrystal Elizabeth at Pixabay.