E-Withdrawal

Work started out well yesterday, but it didn't take me long to hit a snag.

No e-mail.

The church where I work is located in some kind of internet "dead zone." High-speed Internet is not available. At all. At any price.

And our dial-up Internet server was down. This is a problem, because unlike many, I do not have a smart phone with  internet access. I have a dumb phone. [The three of you who read my earlier blog, "Cell Phone Ministry," already know this.]

Being a natural survivor, I adapted. I went to the library, and, using a keyboard that had apparently been danced on by a herd of monkeys, did my e-mail.

Then, walking out of the library, I noticed my cell phone wasn't working. (No, I didn't drop it into macaroni water again!)

No e-mail--and now no cell phone? 

My breath came harder, in short gasps. I began to sweat. I noticed my heart beating faster.

Not e-mail and cell phone at once! I'm cut off! I'm out of contact!

What if a tree falls on me? How will I let anyone know?

I tried the phone again. This screen kept coming up with "Service Unavailable" messages.

Uh oh. I was a little late paying the bill this month. Did they drop me that fast? Do I have to pay unimaginable money for late dues and reconnection fees? As it turned out, no.

I went into the cellphone office and as soon as I cleared the doorway, our likable cell phone lady said,  "We have a tower down." Whew! Not the bill, at least.

Then she said, "It may not be up for 48 hours."

I asked, "Do you have oxygen here?"

48 HOURS? No instant communication for 48 hours?  Preachers depend on their cellphones! I am constantly texting and receiving messages and making phone calls! What would I do for 48 hours?

Build a woodshed? Canoe down the Mississippi?

It is amazing how we get addicted to our pace. We simply can't slow down. And resting...forget it! We pare excess minutes off our schedules until our lives run at ruthless efficiency.

And now, no e-contact! What would I do? One of my favorite things is multitasking!

For example, I like to:

• Eat and do computer work.
• Drive and eat--and switch CDs while doing both.
• Talk and watch TV and answer texts and sharpen my pocket knife--and eat.
• Read incoming texts and drive (ok, I'll stop!!)
• Drive and talk on my cell phone (well, yeah!)
• Drive to pastoral calls--and eat.

I like to stay busy. Really busy. It makes me feel like a pastor!

But I find I may be going too far with it. I'm seeing bad side effects:

• It's much harder for me to sit still and read a book.
• Staying home an entire day is next to impossible.
• Sitting on our deck and watching leaves blow in the wind lasts 15 minutes.
• Listening to slow talkers makes me twitch. I don't want them to talk. I want them to report!
• Driving behind very slow drivers makes me wail, rend my garments and throw ashes on my head.
• And the really bad one--my patience with people gets thin.

I notice Jesus was never in a hurry. He was crowded. He was busy. But he always had plenty of time.

Jesus never said to his disciples, "If we really push it we can heal three more people today!"

Or, "If Lazarus could just hurry this dinner I could do a little preaching before dark! He acts like he was dead or something!"

Something happened with Jesus that we all need to look at. It's found in Mark 6:30-31. "The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, 'Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.'"

Jesus told us to rest!

And if Jesus said to do it, it's okay, right?

Sometimes we get an exaggerated sense of our own importance. We think people can't do without us.

You'd be surprised what they can do without you.

About 9 years ago, I got my lesson. I had a mild heart attack. It was caused by a blood clot at a minor blockage in my artery. The nitro drip almost instantly melted it. But I was in the hospital three days for observation.


Funny thing--my day timer was right beside my bed on the little hospital table. And what was written in it, all those appointments and reminders...didn't mean a thing.

And--surprise! The church people did just fine without me!

(Even finer than I wanted them to...without me.)

What would happen if we just rested--a little every day? I don't mean tearing through the woods on a four wheeler or roaring through waves on a jet ski. Not even watching TV with its 40 commercials per hour or an action movie with 40 killings per hour. Just resting.

Talking. Listening. Reading. Watching leaves.

Why don't you try it? If you will, I will.

And if someone tries to make us feel guilty about it, we'll say, "Jesus said I could!"

P.S. Today, those cell phone towers are still down. And it's okay--if I concentrate on breathing deeply.