A new start when the lockdown comes to an end

For weeks, we have been limited in what we could do and where we could go. It looked like one life or one period or age had come to a close and another way of living came to the forefront.

Several countries loosening the restrictions of the lockdown offer a totally different world than before the corona crisis. Many people had now several weeks to think about their way of life and are wondering how they shall have to continue in this world where nothing shall seem to be the same as before.

“Most of us think that we can change our lives if we just summon the willpower and try even harder this time around,”

says Alan Deutschman, the former executive director of Unboundary, a firm that counsels corporations on how to navigate change.

 “It’s exceptionally hard to make life changes, and our efforts are usually doomed to failure when we try to do it on our own.”

For New Year's resolutions it is well known that mostly when Spring arrives they are all gone or forgotten. To suggest that most people will never change, no matter how much they want to, seems almost giving no opportunity to believe positively in mankind.

In many of the so-called civilised countries, you may find bookstore shelves swollen with the latest self-help books, and life-change gurus like Anthony Robbins, Dr. Phil and, yes, Oprah are pop-culture icons. There are the Experience, Observation, Awareness, even a Fear Guru next to the guru who tends to demoralize us. And for all these gurus there was a lof of screening time on television lately. Bounded to the house, many also came hooked tot the screen wich brought all the bad news about corona, but also brought programs about people who had difficulties with coping with themselves as well with others.

For many people, it also looked difficult to accept themselves for who and what they are.

We noticed also that in this period of the CoViD-19 pandemic several people looked on the net for answers about the role of God in this matter. Many also sought for a spiritual guru. Others looked on social media to others to find out how they were coping with this present situation. Some also tried to learn from the one who hasn't reached the top. It was as if they needed a sibling to relate to their father.
What does not seem bad, is that some people went looking for themselves, and after knowing self, God, world drama history,... they found themselves more related to the divine Creator God. They came to feel that though at other times we are so busy to have contact with other people, that we forget a much more important contact.

In quarantine many become confronted with That Higher Being, coming to feel there is no one between them, there also not being restraints, Someone Who accepts them the way they are.

I t can well be that in this period we took more time to try to impress Him by moulding our character to the one He loves i.e imbibe virtues and give up our bad habits. Did you felt also closer to HIm? So that's kind of evergreen feeling because you are growing with Him and not just getting prepared to showcase self in front of Him after end of the present life. (?)

It is well know we all want to do some things our own way. 

"What the heart loves, the will chooses, and the mind justifies. The mind doesn’t direct the will. The mind is actually captive to what the will wants, and the will itself, in turn, is captive to what the heart wants." 

Having been captive now for some weeks, in our own cocoon, we had enough time to think about ourselves and about our relationship with others and with our Maker.

Having had so much time, many considered if this would not be the moment to go to do it differently. The 8th of June was for the kids as for the parents like a new schoolyear, or a new start of a new and a different life.
This new situation made some people making a resolution and summoning up all their willpower does little good if, ultimately, their heart isn’t in it. Does this mean you should abandon any hope of change? Not at all. If you’re going to make a resolution, you should determine if the resolution is actually good. always you should check what is the driving desire. Is it a good one?

If your resolution is actually a good one, just do it. Go ahead and work out more, smoke or drink less, read your Bible more, pay down your debt and save more for retirement, focus on your marriage, spend more time with your children.
In all cases, we shall have to place ourselves in the surroundings with others. Our interaction with them is always going to influence our aims and actions.

Jesus gave us an example to follow and provide a helper, the Holy Spirit, who can change our desires and empower us to love God and neighbour. As Paul tells us,

 “it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13).

 With us and our willpower, Jesus says, change is impossible,

 “but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26).

 As Cranmer realized, our wills are captive to what our hearts love, and we are powerless to change ourselves without the work of God’s Spirit changing our desires.

When you think through the resolutions you want to make for after Corona, here’s a prayer from the Book of Common Prayer as you ask God to work on your heart:

Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

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Preceding

 Catholics facing a totally different Holy Week

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Additional reading

1. Social media, sympathy & shocks
2. The unseen enemy
3. Broken daily routines
4. Staying at home saves lives
5. A virus giving the world an opportunity to re-evaluate and change the way we live
6. Unlikely silence
7. Covid-19 Psalm 19 Isaiah 26 and the Evangelical Proof-Texters
8. 7 Ways To Boost Your Immune System in Lockdown
9. So many being afraid – reason enough to step in the boat with Christ
10. Love in the Time of Corona
11. Hosting a Virtual Seder During a Pandemic
12. 2020 World Time to pause

To mean, to think, outing your opinion, conviction, belief - Menen, mening, overtuiging, opinie, geloof

Menen (to mean, to think); mening, opinie (opinion, view), overtuiging [vaststaande mening (conviction), geloofsovertuiging (belief), godsdienstige overtuiging (religious persuasion, beliefs, faith, creed)]

bef. 900;  ME menen,  OE mǣnan;  c. G meinen,  D meenen

O.E. mænan  "to mean, tell, say, complain," from W.Gmc. *mainijanan  (cf. O.Fris. mena , Du. menen,  Ger. meinen  to think, suppose, be of the opinion"), from PIE *meino-  "opinion, intent" (cf. O.C.S. meniti  "to think, have an opinion," O.Ir. mian  "wish, desire," Welsh mwyn  "enjoyment"), probably from base *men-  "think." (Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper)

L. sensus:  "perception, feeling, undertaking, meaning,"
Under the Tags "mening" and "overtuiging" you shall be able to find articles about the way of strong thinking of a person and his fixed or firm belief. It is about the state or appearance of being convinced of a certain faith or belief.  But it shall also consider the attitude of people and their actions by a fixed or firmly held belief, opinion, etc.. To mean = to have in mind as one's purpose or intention

The "mening" is the meaning or the general word denoting that which is intended to be or actually is expressed or indicated. Here we take the thought of a person in consideration, how he or she wants to keep to a certain idea. But also the recognition of something as incumbent or fitting, right, or accepting as a true value. sometimes also the sense or the meaning or gist of something, but mainly an opinion or judgement formed or held. To have an opinion there has to be a sense or an awareness or recognition of something; the stimulus may be subjective and the entire process may be mental or intellectual.
+ denotation, connotation, interpretation, foreordain, feeling, sentiment, discern, appreciate, recognize.


Convinced:  Latin convincere to refute, convict, prove, from com- + vincere to conquer
To have been overcome by argumen;  to bring (as by argument) to belief, consent, or a course of action. (Merriam Webster Dict.) per·suade Latin persuadēre, from per- thoroughly + suadēre to advise, urge: to move by argument, entreaty, or expostulation to a belief, position, or course of actio.
To bring by the use of argument or evidence to firm belief or a course of action. According to a traditional rule, one persuades someone to act but convinces someone of the truth of a statement or proposition. (The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.)
To move by argument or evidence to belief, agreement, consent, or a course of action L convincere  to prove (something) false or true, (somebody) right or wrong, equiv. to con- + vincere  to overcome (Dictionary.com Unabridged)

God wants that we come till a fixed decision.  He wishes that we become strong in the faith and that we become convinced in which way to take.  Therefore we must cultivate us a good view and become convinced by Gods Word to take on the True Faith with a clean conscience.Onder de Etiketten, verwijzers of tags "mening" en "overtuiging" zal u artikelen kunnen vinden  over de wijze waarop een persoon sterk aan een idee kan houden of stevig aan een bepaald geloof vast houdt en hier zich ook durft over uitspreken. Hier nemen wij die gedachte in overweging waaraan iemand wil vasthouden.

Het gaat over de inhoud, de bedoeling bij hetgeen men zegt of schrijft. Het zijn zijn opvattingen die een belangrijk onderdeel vormen van zijn aangenomen houding. Deze gedachten kunnen gebasseerd zijn op het gevoelen maar ook heel rationeel of ook wetenschappelijk gefundeerd zijn. Het gaat over de staat of verschijning van overtuiging van een zeker geloof of gedachte. Maar het zal ook de houding van mensen en hun acties door een standvastig vastgehouden aan bepaalde gedachten,geloof, mening, enz. beschouwen. Menen = om in gedachte te hebben als een doel of intentie of het zeker weten, in ernst bedoelen.

De "mening" is de betekenis of het algemene woord dat aanduidt wat wordt gepland te zijn of wat er eigenlijk uitgedrukt of aangeduid wordt. Hier nemen wij de gedachte van een persoon in overweging, hoe hij of zij aan een zeker idee wil vasthouden. Maar ook de erkenning van iets dat zodanig in overweging genomen wordt als het juiste of dat als juiste of ware waarde wordt aangenomen. Soms ook in de zin of de betekenis van of kern van iets, maar hoofdzakelijk een mening of gevormd oordeel waar men aan vasthoudt. Om een mening te hebben moet daar een zin of een bewustzijn of erkenning van iets zijn; de stimulus kan subjectief zijn en het volledige proces kan geestelijk of intellectueel zijn.


Overtuiging of volgens de persoon het niet te weerleggen, en het bewijs.
Het is de gedachte om (zo door argument) naar geloof, toestemming of een handelwijze te brengen. (Merriam Webster Dict). Het houdt ook de neiging in van mensen om anderen hun gedachten aan te raden. Er is dan de drang om door argument, smeekbede, of vermaning anderen naar een geloof, positie of cursus van actio te bewegen. Om door het gebruik van argument of bewijs tot geloof te brengen  of een handelwijze te versterken.
De mening zal tot uiting komen de sterke houding in de aangehouden gedachte waarbij door argument men anderen tot dat geloof tracht te bewegen of te doen veranderen van gedachten,  of om tot te komene tot een overeenkomst, toestemming of een handelwijze.

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van mening zijn, van oordeel zijn, gevoelen, bevinden, denken, vinden, van gedachten zijn, geloven, met eigen ogen zien, zijn eigen licht volgen, zijn eigen kijk op iets hebben, goede kijk op iets hebben,

mijns achtens, mijn oordeel, naar mijn oordeel, naar mijn rekening, volgens mijn dunken, mijns dunkens, naar mijn wijze van zien, mijns erachtens, bij mijn weten, naar mijn schik, in iemands oog

in gemoede nemen, interpreteren, interpretatie

bij zijn gedachten blijven,pré-opineren, ergens niet af willen,

Aanduiding, connotatie, raisonneren, raisonnatie, redeneren, opvatten, inzien,

oordelen, zijn stem over (voor, tegen) iets uitbrengen, bepalen, beslissen, decideren, determineren, zich decideren, resolveren, prononceren,besluiten, maatstaf aanleggen, een besluit opmaken,

opvatting, zienswijze, denkbeeld, inzicht, inzien, gezindheid, overtuiging, dunk, convictie, intuïtie,sententie, opinie, roep, stem, signatuur

besluit, beslissing, uitspraak, oordeelvelling, oordeel, decisie, verdict, besluitvaardigheid,

God wil dat wij tot een vast besluit komen. Hij wenst dat wij ervan overtuigd geraken welke weg in te slaan. Hiervoor moeten wij ons een goede zienswijze aankweken en door Gods Woord overtuigd geraken om met een zuiver geweten het Ware Geloof aan te nemen.