Cultivating What Matters in the Midst of COVID-19

Friends, as we close this unprecedented week together, we wanted to pause and let you know how Team Cultivate is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The health and wellbeing of this community and our team are very close to our hearts. We have taken quick action this week to prioritize virus containment, including asking everyone on our team to work from home (we're grateful to be able to do so!) and postponing the Making Things Happen Conference, scheduled for later this month, to July. 

We have spent many hours together, and with wise advisors, in conversation and prayer, focused on the immediate needs in front of us as well as on the needs of this community for months to come as the full effects of this pandemic are felt. Here are a few things we want you to know:

We're in this together. We have a unique opportunity to, by our individual actions, make a HUGE difference for those around us. We can channel a spirit of generosity, the desire to help—right now—by following guidelines and taking proactive steps to protect others. We ALL have the opportunity to be a hero by seeing ourselves as part of something bigger than ourselves. (More on this perspective here—so good!)

We can think big picture. We can let seasons of uncertainty drive us to fear, focused only on what's right in front of us, or we can use them as fuel. This season will not last forever. Think to your own past and the stories of others: how many times have your challenges become turning points and launch pads for opportunities? As Christine Caine says, you may feel like you're being buried, but you're just being planted to grow. Let's strike while the iron is hot and see what it means to number our days. 

We can take small steps. An MTH speaker and friend, Hannah Brencher, put this so beautifully: do in the dark what you know how to do in the light. "Don't give up on the small things that empower you when the days are good," she says. Take a walk, call your Mom, drink a glass of water. She was speaking specifically to those struggling with depression, but the advice is applicable to the darkness many are feeling right now.

Take care of yourself in order to help others do the same. When we focus on what matters in the big picture, we can take the first, small step today that may make a world of difference in our tomorrow. Yes, even in between washing our hands and working from home and wrangling kids who are out of school. We can take things day-by-day, reminding ourselves to "cultivate what matters" in each moment. We can turn challenges into opportunities.

We can use our resources. Here are 5 practical ways to use your PowerSheets to thrive in this season of uncertainty.

As always, we'll be with you each step of the way—with more resources coming soon. We've significantly shifted our efforts to focus on helping you and each other thrive in this season. 

Friends, we want you to know that Team Cultivate is not afraid. We have a great hope that does not change, even in the midst of an ever-changing world. And because of this, we are looking forward to taking care of you, and each other, as best we can. If you would like prayer, we'll be meeting each morning for the next few weeks to listen to each other, share what our community is experiencing, pray for your needs—and let all of this guide our actions. We'd love to hear from you.

We can thrive in the midst of uncertainty.
We will get through this together.
We can still cultivate what matters—little by little, day by day. 
We are not alone, and this season will not last forever.

With hope and love,
Team Cultivate

For the most up-to-date news on COVID-19, please see the CDC website here.

Additional Resources:
Using your PowerSheets in a season of uncertainty
Cultivating habits in a season of transition
Write the Word Hope Journal
When Your Plans Don't Go as Planned
How to thrive right now (a livestream with Lara)