March 2020 Blog

David Hixon • March 19, 2020

One Day at a Time

One Day at a Time is a phrase that has become somewhat of my mantra over the last year. There have been many times when I had to stop myself from worrying or getting too far ahead of myself. If I tried to think about what might happen next month or beyond that I would sometimes find myself discouraged or worried or even fearful. I had to remind myself every step of the way that I am not promised tomorrow. Today is all I (we) have. Tomorrow will take care of itself. Today has enough worries (Matthew 6:25-34). This happened as we walked through the process of selling our home and all our earthly possessions (especially my motorcycle - ha) and then it happened as we said goodbye to almost 15 years at one church and one location. Then it happened as we went out on the road and we often did not know where we would lay our head that night. One day at a time, one day at a time. Then when we had to get on that plane to come to Jamaica and said goodbye to our children and grandchildren and friends it was a difficult “one day.” And every day of our almost three weeks here in Jamaica has been, “Lord what do you want from me today?” We had no idea that the Coronavirus would strike and suddenly every day became even more challenging. The plans we had made changed every day. Just moving and settling in became that and much more. But we knew God was in control and so we have continued to take each day as it comes.

Does this mean we should not plan for tomorrow? Absolutely not. But it does mean our plans might, and often do, change for that day. We came to Jamaica making plans for all the groups that would come to help us in more ways than one. We knew some were coming to help us build a much-needed shed. Some were coming to help us paint, a daunting task to keep up with here on the NACH grounds. Others were coming to do assorted jobs which we could not afford to do or didn’t have the manpower to do. And suddenly, within a matter of days, that was all canceled and now we were dealing with bunkering down for the foreseeable future, as many of you have had to do. Plans change but with God we rely on Him each day . . . one day at a time. 

We had hoped to finally get a chance to visit the beautiful beaches of Jamaica. Those who know us know how much we love the beach. We haven’t made it yet. Instead, today, and yesterday, we have been madly printing homework assignments out. But we are thankful for our new printer, which the Lord provided through you, to make the job possible. 

So what is my word of encouragement to you today? Don’t let fear consume you. None of this caught God by surprise. He has you right in the palm of His hand but He hasn’t promised to reveal what will happen tomorrow or next week or next month. He says trust me today. Don’t worry about tomorrow. Isaiah 41:10

As we sit here today we have no idea what is going to happen. We are currently on a 90 day guest visa which means we have to leave Jamaica before the end of May but who knows if we will be allowed back into the US and if so will we be allowed back in Jamaica when we try to return a few weeks later? Will our groups, who we desperately need, be allowed to come and minister here this summer? The world is full of uncertainty. Some of you may be wondering if you have enough groceries (or toilet paper – ha) to last through this crisis. God is in control. One day at a time. Only He knows what tomorrow holds but as the old saying goes, we know who holds tomorrow.