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By Ariane Williams

Unmapped. Unexplored. Sometimes, we become fearful of what we cannot see.

What if God has us in hiding so that we can see our true self and the true world?  Sometimes, we must see the truth and sometimes, the truth is ugly. I’m not talking about the physical; I’m talking about the internal.

He is trying to heal us. There are times in life when we must walk in uncharted territory. There are times in life when life will change as we know it. Well, life has changed as I knew it. Do we truly appreciate all that God has given to us? Are we complaining instead of praising? I have learned to wait, to love, to restrain, to understand, to appreciate, to explore and to dream during this time. I have experienced mixed, uncharted emotions.

God is trying to adjust the focus.  The focus has been on everything except Him. Last week, my life was feeling chaotic. I remember feeling tired; I wanted a break. Ever since the time changed, it seems as if life has been flying. Now, things have slowed down almost to a halt.  We must begin to process and evaluate some things; I call this an inbreak in the middle of an outbreak.  He is showing us the areas in our hearts that are broken and bruised. God IS picking up those broken pieces. He is restoring the pieces. He is taking away the distractions so that we can see what’s important. We cannot do the same things in an uncharted territory.

I have seen pictures of people looking unkempt, even celebrities. We forget that they are people. Those pictures represent truth to me. Those pictures represent humbleness. We have the chance to see the fragments that exist in the systems of our world. We have the chance to see how we waste food. We have the chance to see how we do not take care of our bodies. We have the chance to see how we don’t focus on our marriage. We have the chance to see how we have neglected ourselves. We have the chance to see how we have neglected our homes. We have the chance to see that the nice clothes in our closets do not reflect our purpose. We have the chance to see that teaching must first be taught at home. We have the chance to see how we waste our finances. We have the chance to see who really cares. We have the chance to see that our traditional sermons need an upgrade. We have the chance to see life. We are all the same at this moment as we walk in uncharted territory.

A couple of years ago, I wrote a play titled “The Cure.” The characters had different issues that they were facing in life: illness, marital issues, single parenting, absent father wound, abuse and depression. They were all locked in one room, as there was some disaster taking place on the outside that they could not see. It was in that room that a marriage was healed, an illness was cured, a single mother found love again and a son forgave his father. After getting out of the room, they found out that there was nothing going on outside. Their focus was distorted by the distractions of life. God was containing them so that He could heal them. When He healed them, He released them.

I have become a true work in progress. When I come out from behind these doors, I will be stronger than I was before and closer to Him. There are times that we must practice social distancing when we need time to rebuild, reboot and repurpose our purpose. My daughter stated to me that Jesus was going to take away the bad virus outside. She told me that the virus was under the ground (your feet). It was then that I knew that our ground is being prepared and will be prosperous. We will conquer the regions, waters and paths: uncharted territory. He has us in hiding so that He can heal us.

Ariane Williams is a teacher, minister, published author and liturgical dancer. Email her at arianewilliams810@yahoo.com.