Gulf Shores, Alabama is one of the top vacation spots for many people in the South. It is especially popular for those who are from the “twin cities” of Monroe and West Monroe, Louisiana. Every spring, summer, and sometimes during the fall, people flock there to get some well-deserved rest and relaxation.
Being from West Monroe, almost everyone my family and I knew regularly went to Gulf Shores. We did as well, twice: in the summer of 2003 before moving to Colorado, and in June of 2007 after my Uncle Bobby got married in New Orleans.
After my Uncle Bobby’s wedding in New Orleans, my family and I began the three-hour journey to Gulf Shores, with the Corley family and their kids. We went to Cedar Crest Baptist Church with them for many years in West Monroe and always enjoyed their company. Having traveled over twenty-one hours to get to Louisiana, my sister and I were thrilled that the next part of our trip would be a lot shorter.
Yet, little did we know, that this next chapter of our summer vacation was to be a little different than the rest.
Mr. Craig and Mrs. Shawn Corley, before we left New Orleans, had given us a 2-Way radio, to communicate back and forth with them on the road. Before giving a radio to us, they suggested we play a game. Over the three hour trip to Gulf Shores, we would call each other back and forth on our radios, playing songs from our iPods and CDs, to see who would have the “better song.”
So, for all three hours on the road, we did just that. From classic country to Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, and the song “Sweet Home Alabama,” the time we spent traveling to Gulf Shores listening to music just flew by. Though we barely saw the Corley’s for those three hours or so, because of our 2-Way radios, we never felt alone.
Right now, almost every single one of us is in our homes, wearing PJs watching Netflix, reading books, cooking, doing anything to pass the time until the Coronavirus has ended its “reign of terror.”
In one way or another, all of us are separated for the time being: from family and from friends, even if those family and friends are just minutes or hours away. During this time of “social distancing,” there are countless reasons why you could say you feel alone. Whether it is from being inside the house too long, becoming unemployed because of the shutdown of the economy, or from just being mentally ill prior to all this, many of you may feel like you really are losing your mind.
Yet, despite how alone you may feel, how anxious you may be, or how you may be affected by all of this, I want to encourage you to fight. Listed below are three suggestions on how to fight, all of which are for me, just as much as they are for you.
1. Spend time with the One who is never distant.
Read your Bible. Pray. Spend time reading uplifting things and listening to worship music. Shift your focus to the One who gives you “a sound mind.”
2. Be intentional about all relationships in your life.
From your family and friends living with you to those who are across the country or on the other side of the world, call and text those you love regularly, especially those with illnesses, sicknesses, and diseases of all kinds. For those who need social interaction to stay sane and happy, also to feel less alone, this season of “social distancing” is especially burdensome.
3. Don’t stop living your life.
You may be laid off right now. You may at home with kids running around. You may have elderly loved ones, adult children you long to see but for now, cannot. Yet, no matter how you have been affected by all this, remember the words of Leonardo Dicaprio’s character from the movie The Revenant, “As long as you can still grab a breathe, you fight.”
Looking back, my family and I could have made the journey to Gulf Shores without anyone but ourselves and we would have been fine. Yet, the journey was more enjoyable and less trying because we decided to not go it alone.
Friends, through technology to those you can’t get to, and your own two feet to those you can while quarantined, keep sharing your life with others. Play games, watch movies, enjoy home-cooked meals. Step outside for just a moment, to gaze upon the glory of God’s creation. Though it looks different because of this virus, as Hebrews 10:25 says, “don’t give up meeting together.”
In conclusion, know that though this world is more wild and unpredictable than ever before if you are grounded in Jesus and in practical engagement with those you love during these days, that the “winds” of life won’t be able to “defeat” you because you will have “strong roots.”
Until Next Time,
Jacob McGowen
The Adventures of A Warrior 