But I considered it necessary to send you Epaphroditus - my brother, coworker, and fellow soldier, as well as your messenger and minister to my need -  since he has been longing for all of you and was distressed because you heard that he was sick.

Indeed, he was so sick that he nearly died. However, God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow. 

For this reason, I am very eager to send him so that you may rejoice again when you see him and I may be less anxious.

Philippians 2:25-28 CSB

Anxious.

Sorrow upon sorrow.

Distressed.

Longing for all of you.

All these emotions are found here in this passage. 

Paul's lockdown lesson:

We all have emotions and that's OK.

It's OK to express them to others - Paul doesn't hide his anxiety here. 

We all need safe places and safe people to be real about how we're feeling. 

Thanks Paul for sharing so publicly so that we too can have the freedom to say how we're feeling. 

#lockdownlessons