In this bonus episode of Let's Talk, Jasmine Holmes, Jackie Hill Perry, and Melissa Kruger update each other on life over the past eight months of lockdowns, schooling disruptions, online church, and family life in close quarters. They talk about the difficulties of lockdown as well as the unexpected blessings.

Jackie notes that the pandemic has been like a light that exposes both good and bad. One thing it has exposed is our inability to make and keep plans in our own power, something addressed in James 4:13–16. The lack of control we feel in a pandemic can also create greater dependency on God. Jackie says, "I think that's a blessing, honestly, to have to need God in a way that I've always needed him, but to actually recognize it."

We plan to be back with Season 2 of Let's Talk in early 2021. Subscribe today to receive new episodes when they are released!

Books mentioned in this episode:

• Nannie Helen Burroughs: A Documentary Portrait of an Early Civil Rights Pioneer, 1900–1959
• Delighting in the Trinity by Michael Reeves
• Gay Girl: Good God by Jackie Hill Perry
• Mother to Son by Jasmine Holmes
• Keeping the Heart by John Flavel
• The Warmth of Other Sons by Isabel Wilkerson
• The Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling

Related content:

• Normal Again, Thanks to COVID-19
• We Never Had Control
• The Coronavirus and the Pony
• How Can I Handle School Anxiety this Fall?

This episode of Let’s Talk is sponsored by LifeWay, publisher of Jackie Hill Perry's first Bible study, Jude: Contending for the Faith in Today's Culture. Over seven sessions, you'll study the Book of Jude verse-by-verse, dive into themes of being called, loved, and kept, and learn how to point others to Jesus in grace and truth. While often overlooked, the Book of Jude remains as relevant today as the time it was written. Get your copy of Jude wherever books are sold or at LifeWay.com/Jude