I recently heard a police officer being questioned about the biggest issue the department is currently dealing with. He answered: “Domestic violence calls.” I hadn’t thought much about that yet but of course, it made perfect sense. Many of our homes include at least one person, if not an entire household of people, who want to have the last word. Prior to the past month or so there were several ways to decompress before total war; someone could leave–visit a friend, stop off for a drink, go for a long drive, etc.. But we aren’t supposed to be doing any of that right now.

In the past, it has typically been holidays that were filled with calls for domestic interventions, usually the most dreaded calls of all. Any police officer will tell you that domestic violence calls are the most unstable and anything can happen. It can turn very dangerous quickly. Often alcohol or drugs fuel the situation but that doesn’t have to be the case. Many of us are spending much more time with the ones who live in our home and Satan loves nothing more than to wreak havoc. This is a great opportunity for him with those who do not guard themselves.

We, in the U.S., usually have very busy lifestyles with swinging doors on our homes as we run in and out. It’s possible to live with many different personalities if you don’t spend a lot of time with each other, but right now we are forced to. My hubby posted a meme of a prisoner saying to the rest of us: “Good morning inmates,” and to some, it truly feels that way. As we begin to go stir crazy it will be easier to ignite fires with our housemates. Perhaps the best thing we can do is to stop adding wood to the fire.

“If there’s no wood, the fire goes out; if nobody gossips, contention stops. As coals are to embers and wood to fire is a quarrelsome person to kindling strife.” (Hebrews 12:20-21) If you feel the pressure building inside try going for a walk and chatting with Jesus about it. We are still allowed to do that. It just may be what keeps the 911 call at bay.

It’s also being reported that suicide rates are beginning to climb. Some can’t handle being alone and some can’t handle being with their family. People have many reasons for feeling there is no better way than out. We need to have the discernment to know when to speak and when to be silent. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number is 1-800-273-8255.