If You're Worried About Losing Your Job Due To the Coronavirus
Everything is uncertain in this world right now. No one’s health, job or life is guaranteed to be spared from this virus. The job market and economies around the world are plummeting.
Maybe you’re feeling the anxiety or stress of potentially losing your job.
Maybe you’re graduating this spring and wondering what kind of job market will be waiting for you come summertime.
Maybe you’ve already lost your job, or your spouse lost his job, or your parents’ retirement savings just lost half their value.
Maybe you’re self-employed and your income stream is drying up real fast as everyone shelters down to get through this global pandemic.
Maybe your job is secure for now, but you lived through the last recession 2009 and your mind quakes at facing that again.
I’m in that last camp right now. I was in high school during the last financial crisis and subsequent recession, so I was old enough to see and understand what my parents went through when my dad lost his job, when we relied on food stamps to keep food on the table, our house was foreclosed on, the creditors kept calling and my parents had to decide whether to pay the electric bill or the phone bill each month. A decade later, I’m terrified to go through that again and more so, to see my parents go through that again.
So, if fear of losing your job is at the forefront of your mind right now, here is what’s been helping me (fight to) keep my peace:
God in in control and He is our provider
First and foremost, on repeat, I’ve been reminding myself to be grateful for Jesus through whom we get to be called sons and daughters of God. Because that title — that access to the One who holds the entire world under His care and control — means we have nothing to worry about. God knows those who are His. Every one of us by name. He is our hiding place and when we abide under the refuge of our God, He will not let any harm come to those who belong to Him.
Even if things get really, really hard — if our bodies give out, jobs are lost, freedoms are restrained — He will still be near. The world and economies could come crashing down around us and God would still be in control and NONE of His children would go without His provision. Jesus died on a cross to give you the protection of His name.
This world is not our home. It has no power over the ones purchased with the blood of the Lamb. We carry His name! A thousand may fall at your side, though ten thousand are dying around you, but it will not come near you (Ps. 91:7). Never have the righteous begged for bread (Ps. 37:25). Over and over, I remind myself how God saw my family through every hard season of life when finances were tight and jobs were lost, but He always provided somehow, even if it was at the eleventh hour.
“He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous shall flourish as the green leaf.” -Proverbs 11:28
Take stock of your financial situation
As someone who had a lot of student loan and credit card debt, I can admit that sitting down to tally up all your assets, income, expenses and debt is intimidating. Pretending it’s all fine, and it will be fine, while going on with life as usual is comfortable. But the world around is changing and we need to be aware of where we stand. God provides, but if we continue to spend our money frivolously on things we want, we can’t expect God to then to keep us in a lifestyle of luxury and access when we ask for His provision.
“You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.” -James 4:3
Take the time to sit down and assess your financial situation. Make a budget:
What income do you have coming in?
What expenses do you have?
What debt payments are you making each month? How much are you in debt?
For me, this worked best when I made an Excel spreadsheet and then typed up every purchase and expense for a three-month period. I pulled up my banking app and credit card statements and organized my spending by type of expense (Groceries, Eating Out, Rent, Debt Payments, Shopping, Giving, Gas, etc..). What you see may not be pretty, but you’ll get a really good picture of how much you need for basic life needs versus how much goes towards wants.
Find ways to cut back spendinG
“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.” -1 Timothy 6:-7
When you’ve taken stock of your expenses, see what you can cut back for awhile. Even if your job is secure right now, economists are predicting things will get worse before they get better. Are there subscriptions you can cancel? A splurge you can quit for a bit? A want you can say no to? Maybe consider doing the contentment challenge to encourage you and your household to use what you have for the next three months instead of buying more stuff (I am thinking of doing this!).
If you’re in the U.S. and have federal student loans, the government put all federal student loans on forbearance through September 30, 2020, which means no payments are due during this time and interest will not accrue on your balance. If you are still employed and are able to make payments, continue to do so because this means more of your payment goes towards principal versus interest so you’re making a bigger dent on your debt. But, if your income has decreased or you’ve been laid off completely, this is one category of spending that can be put on hold to help you cover other needs like food and rent.
Consider alternative sources of income and how you can wisely spend your time
A lot of us are currently quarantined at home for the foreseeable future, so even if you still have your day job, now is a good time to start exploring if there is a side job you can start doing to bring in an extra source of income. Whether it’s starting to work on a book you always dreamed of writing, learning to crochet baby booties, starting a blog, looking for online copyediting jobs, or learning how to use Adobe Illustrator.
Apostle Paul wrote seven epistles from prison (out of the 13 New Testament books attributed to him). I know I can’t equate our cushy quarantine at home with a Roman prison, but the point is this: the lack of freedom to move and being forced to stay in one place could have made Paul stop or slow down his ministry. He could have taken that time as a break from ministry. But he didn’t. He wrote letters of encouragement to his co-laborers in Christ, his children in faith and the churches he visited and planted. He worshiped and sang hymns. He taught in person and through letters. He still pointed people to Christ even though he couldn’t leave his cell.
What work does the Lord have for you here during this quarantine? Who is in your home or on the other side of this screen (on social media or a phone call/text away) that you can serve, encourage, check in with, and point to Jesus? Are your lips praising Him right now or complaining? Are you building up the kingdom or sitting idle?
For many people, it takes being laid off or fired to give them the permission to pursue something they would have never otherwise been brave enough to try - whether it’s ministry or secular work. Because when you have nothing to lose, you become a bit less risk averse, especially if you’re desperate to provide for yourself and your family. You do what you need to do to survive. Channel that during this crisis and prayerfully step out in faith on that idea that’s been on your heart for a long time but it just never seemed like a good time to quit your job and take this on.
“She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens. She appraises a field and buys it; from her earnings she plants a vineyard.” -Proverbs 31:15-16
For your inspiration, here are some of the companies that started during a recession: General Electric, General Motors, IBM, Disney, HP, Hyatt, Trader Joe’s, FedEx, Microsoft, Salesforce, CNN, Apple, Google and Facebook. You don’t need to become the next Facebook or General Motors. Maybe you’ll always be a one-woman shop but if it is enough to provide for your family and it also serves a need in this world, it’s worth trying.
Please note, this is not about promoting the hustle culture or encouraging you to be productive during a global pandemic, but about redeeming the time and spending this quarantine wisely, in a God-honoring way. So often, we say we don’t have time to do something, but now, a lot of us DO have the time.
Look for opportunities to give and serve
Even if your own finances are sparse right now, there is someone in your life and community who is in a greater need. So, let’s look for opportunities to give and serve others. You may not able to help financially, but can you offer to do a grocery run for an elderly neighbor? Cook a meal for someone? Call a friend and actually listen to how she’s truly doing? Can you write an encouraging text or social media post?
“In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” -Acts 20:35
In Ezekiel 15, when God talked about Sodom’s wickedness, it wasn’t idols that was their downfall, but greed and idleness: “She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy” (Ezekiel 16: 49). She (Sodom) lived with her daughters in the lap of luxury - proud, gluttonous, and lazy, while around them there was great hunger and need, and God punished them for that.
“One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessings will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.” -Proverbs 11:24-25
Don’t give expecting a reward or even a thank you. Give because you are able, even when you have little. Give from your need and your abundance (Luke 21:1-4). Give because everything we have is God’s for us to steward, not to hoard or to spend on our pleasures. Give because we are one body in Christ and when one of us hurts, the rest of us should feel it and want to help stop the pain.
“Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will repay him for his deed.” -Proverbs 19:17
God is watching how we react during this time of crisis: if we keep our peace or turn to anxiety; if we turn to Him or to the world for comfort and provision; if we fill our minds and hearts with His word or with fear and the world’s entertainment; if we share or hoard; if we are selfish or compassionate. What you do during this quarantine and global time of need will yield fruit, and it is up to each one of us what we plant. And God, who sees and knows all things, will give the increase. For your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
And let us know grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. -Galatians 6:9
I’d love to hear from you! How are you doing - truly - with all that’s going on in the world?
Leave a comment below or get in touch via social media!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Yelena is the founder and editor in chief Tirzah. Yelena works as an attorney in tax and in her spare time, she is working on her first book for unmarried twenty-something women in extended waiting seasons and running Tirzah. She has a passion for pointing young women to Christ, and enjoys reading, writing, traveling, and spending time with her family.