From the Pulpit: Take a break

I love technology. Do you know what I love most? It is reliable, you can always count on it. Hmmm, you may rightly be questioning my sobriety at this point, but hold on, stick with me. Technology never fails. IT never fails to let me down. IT is always failing when I have unconsciously believed that it would never do such a thing. Of course, this is an exaggeration, but it can sure feel that way some times. My friend, an IT professional for a large multinational company, earns a handsome income fixing technology problems. He gives great advice that I’m sure many of you have heard before. No matter what the problem, he always asks dryly, “Have you logged off and rebooted?” 

Duh? Hello? Why didn’t I think of that?  

Just like our favorite tech gadgets, you and I can from time to time get out of balance. Logging off and rebooting our minds, bodies and souls is a crucial discipline if we want to remain in balance. Alcohol, cigarettes, energy drinks, greasy food, Facebook and Netflix provide only a temporary illusion of balance. They can’t update our spiritual, emotional, physical beings. Your body has been designed to heal itself.  Logging off and rebooting your life is an important principle that we find in the most helpful health and wellness manual of all time, the Bible. Most likely you have heard the old adage: when your output exceeds your input, your upkeep will be your downfall. A battery can’t put out what it doesn’t have. Who in their right mind would throw their phone away if the battery died? No one. Texting and driving are not a problem in America. It is a symptom. A symptom of imbalance that comes from not practicing the discipline of logging off.

Why don’t busy people like you and I simply come to the realization that we need to log off and reboot our mind, body, and soul?

The Bible has given us a tremendous blessing called the Sabbath. A weekly command to log off, reset, heal, refine, defrag and update our software. Today, I would encourage you to consider the fact that the LORD worked for six days, and rested on the seventh. When was the last time you intentionally paused life, and chose to just breathe, or worship, or serve someone who could never possibly repay you? When was the last time you reflected on the many blessings in your life? You can balance your health by taking a Sabbath from all your labors. Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

What if there was a place where you could log off each week, and be restored? What if such a place existed? What if Jesus was here in Brandon? What if you could “come to Him” whenever you needed to log off? Think of the Sabbath as logging out, and rebooting your soul system. Rest. Reset. Heal. Refine. Defrag. Update. The Sabbath was given for our benefit. So, practice it. Take a break. Stop and take a spiritual break. Your spouse, kids, friends, coworkers, and neighbors will thank you.