Power Cycling

 

“Have you tried turning it off and turning it back on again?” 

 

That question is my contribution every time something doesn’t work. I’m terrible with electronics. I don’t know the difference between a router and a modem, but we have one of those things at the church and it powers our internet (I think). It seems that once a week no one can get online, but when I unplug the device, wait twenty to thirty seconds, and plug it back in, it usually works. Apparently that is called “power cycling.” If power cycling doesn’t work, I’m out of ideas. 

 

While I will never understand the ins and outs of electronic devices, I have come to learn that sometimes they just need to be unplugged. During that half minute or so it somehow regains it composure and is able to function again. It seemingly forgets how stubborn it was being just seconds ago, and it kicks right back into gear. I understand people a little bit better than I understand electronics, and I have also discovered that people need to unplug every now and then as well. 

 

Does the news ever get you frustrated? Turn it off. Does the violence on TV make you feel sick? Turn it off. Do the sexually explicit lyrics on the radio put bad thoughts into your head? Turn it off. Does the negativity on Facebook drag you down? Turn it off. Do the pictures of everyone else’s “perfect life” on Instagram make you feel inadequate? Turn it off. Does Twitter, well, just turn off Twitter. 

 

The Bible calls Satan the “prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2),” and I believe he uses the airwaves to get inside our heads. There is so much negativity, so much intended to divide us or tempt us, and it is constantly pumped into our heads. But we do have an advantage in this fight; we can simply turn it off. This is the way of escape mentioned in I Corinthians 10:13. No one is prying our eyelids open, forcing us to absorb any of this content. We do it willingly, and I wonder why. If Facebook made me angry every time I got on it, I’d stop getting on. If instagram made me feel like I can never measure up to other people, I’d stop getting on. But people have become addicted to those outlets, not even realizing how little they get in return. 

 

If that describes you, let me ask you the only question I know in regards to electronics: Have you tried turning it off? Take a break. Let things cool back down. I’m not saying never turn it back on; that is up to you. But I imagine that just like our modem (or maybe our router?), you will feel better after you unplug everything. And whatever you do, make sure you are filling your mind with something positive. That is why Paul wrote “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things (Philippians 4:8).”