By Jerrica KF Ching

I am sure that many, if not all of us, who are in helping professions are feeling the immense strain of working and serving during a year of turmoil.  It is a combination of a pandemic, an election year, and several civil movements that have left many feeling anxious, angry, apathetic, and more.  In the midst of ongoing external conflict between our city, state, and national leaders, I have also found myself fatigued by my own inner conflict I am experiencing on a day-to- day basis.

Many of us here on AAWOL have a calling to serve others through ministry and fellowship.  I know I am not alone when I say that there are times when I truly question how effective I am actually being.  There is hardship and chaos constantly swirling around us.  Many of us are feeling the effects of working from home, and now wearing several other hats aside from our chosen profession.  There is no clear end date for when this will be resolved, and perhaps that is the most terrifying thing of all.  How do we keep going when we don’t know where we are going?  How do we remind others to be patient and kind, when we ourselves sometimes feel like this is getting to be too much?

In the beginning stages of quarantine-related government shutdowns and stay-at-home orders, another therapist in the field told me that it is close to impossible to be effective in the middle of a pandemic.  At first I felt very slighted by this comment and felt my anger building.  For many of us in helping professions, we have spent years cultivating the gift of service to ensure that we are able to provide safety and security for others!  Is what we’re doing all for naught?  That night I was quickly reminded that this comment was not meant to dismiss any of the efforts that have been made.  It was also a reminder that I carelessly assumed that the current events in someone’s life revolved around my actions or my words.  It was a reminder to look at the even bigger picture – who is really in charge here?

Although it has felt that our world has been completely flipped upside down, there are so many unexpected glimpses of God reaching out and reminding us to connect to one another, in ways that we probably would not have done so if the world were not in the current state that it has been in.  We have found new and innovative ways to connect with love ones.  We have learned to take conscious efforts and steps to set aside our work time from our family time.  We have made new memories as we learn to be teachers, coordinators, chefs, and tech experts as we work from home.  We have learned to respect and understand others who have different views than we do.  We have learned to accept what we cannot control.  We have learned to let go of plans, be flexible with our schedules, and to cope and self-soothe in different and creative ways.

While there has been a lot of conflict in 2020, there have also been more opportunities for us to learn how to resolve these conflicts on our own.  May 2020 teach us to recognize that conflict is a way for us to adapt, to learn, and to ultimately trust that things are going to be okay.  Jeremiah 29:11 reminds that the person with the plan is not any of us here on Earth, but God and God alone.  Let us trust in his lessons that he is currently teaching.

Jerrica KF Ching grew up on the island of Oahu, Hawaii and currently lives in the beautiful state of Washington, working as a licensed mental health counselor and Asian/Pacific Islander mental health specialist at Columbia Wellness. She graduated with an MA in Marriage, Couple, and Family Counseling from George Fox University, where she is now an adjunct professor and supervisor. She finds joy in sharing her compassion with students on the importance of recognizing and acknowledging racial and cultural differences in others. Her research on racial colorblindness has been published in The International Journal of Social Science Studies.