Last summer our family lived through another war, and it was one of the hardest seasons of my life. For over a month, there were missile attacks launched against most of the country with violence and terrorism in the city we live in. Practically speaking, it meant trips to the bomb shelter with our kids, avoiding certain parts of the city, and one scary time on the highway with my family when a rocket exploded in the air overhead. When people realize where we live, inevitably the comment will come up: "I don't know how you did it." Others ask, "How did you live through the war?" Some beloved counselors pressed us more for answers, and when my husband and I discussed it further, we came up with several things that helped.
I would like to share them with you, because even though you may not be going through a physical war, we are all still fighting in a battle that is not against flesh and blood. These were not things that we planned beforehand or consciously thought about. However, in looking back, they really helped.
- Continue with a "normal" life and ministry as much as possible. We decided that if we were going to stay, we should continue to minister. That meant traveling to our congregation from a city with a couple of rocket attacks a week to a city with several per day. It helped to continue in our ministries as much as possible, and we were continually reminded of the bigger picture and why God had called us to this place. Also, in times like these you grow very close to your national friends and partners.
- Do a project as a family. We planted a garden. It was really a family undertaking from buying the seeds in the store to digging up the soil to plant. It gave us such joy to teach our kids about gardening and how things grow. Every day we would water and watch things begin to sprout. It was a small thing, but it went a long way. It was fun for the kids to compare the sizes of the watermelons every day.
- Teach yourself a new skill. My husband is an avid outdoorsman and has always wanted to learn to fly fish. He ordered a fly rod, watched videos online, and went to the neighborhood park to practice his casting. I am a musician and have always wanted to learn guitar. We took advantage of a ceasefire to travel to a mall, where I bought a cheap instrument so I could teach myself how to play.
- Take a Sabbath and give yourself some extra margin. Not long before the war began, my husband and I decided to start taking a Sabbath day off. During the conflict, we took more down time than normal. We guarded our one day off per week and took extra time to play with the kids, get wet in the kiddie pool on our terrace, watch more movies, and be silly. We were very intentional that summer about our margin time and gave each other permission to take some extra time to do fun things.
- Set boundaries for yourself. For my mental health, I had to set boundaries. I could not go on websites and read the news because it was too distressing. I relied on my husband to tell me things that were pertinent. Instead, I had to focus on things that were in my sphere of influence like my house, children, spouse, and different ministry opportunities.
- Recognize that even though you are healthy and political situations can improve, there are still effects on your mental, emotional, and spiritual state. Although my family and I are physically in good shape, we are not completely unscathed from all we have been through. When there is a siren drill, I hate that my small children run and hide under a desk. It is important to recognize these effects in ourselves and in our children and counter negative attitudes with appropriate Scriptural responses. I continually take a personal audit of where I am, spiritually and mentally. What this looks like for me is a weekly meeting with just myself. I look over my calendar for the coming week, plan out what is required of me, ask myself questions, schedule intentional down time, and then give myself and family lots of grace.
- Most importantly, trust God for the peace that passes understanding and rely on Him. There were times of crisis, and the only thing I could do was recite scripture. When sirens went off and we had to make decisions, I always had a sense of peace that could only have come from God. We leaned on God and truly came to understand that Jesus is our daily bread. He is enough. We serve an amazing God, and sometimes life is really hard. But when life is hard, he is still good. Always.
Our city and country are once again going through some very turbulent times, and I am constantly reminded of the goodness of God. I take it one day at a time, sometimes one hour at a time, and rely on His grace and sustainment for me and my family. Despite the hardships, we acknowledge that there is One who is bigger than all of this. And His faithfulness is great indeed.
Angela lives in the Middle East with her husband and two children. They have served overseas in ministry for three years. Angela teaches music at two different schools and leads worship at their congregation. She enjoys reading, writing, making music and spending time with friends.
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