CONTROL + ALT + DELETE - April 22
Today’s Readings: AM Psalm 37:1-18; PM Psalm 37:19-42 ; Dan. 5:13-30; 1 John 5:13-20(21); Luke 5:1-11
In a few weeks, I hope you will open your mail to read a beautiful story written by one of our parishioners on the interesting ways we have adapted to worship during the Pandemic. When Charles was observing the production of our livestreamed service, he found great humor in how we handle one of the issues that can happen with our streaming software. Sometimes the computer mouse will lock up. Part of our ongoing training is to teach our volunteers behind the booth what to do. Answer: You hit CONTROL + ALT + DELETE and then CANCEL.
This past week, before our 11:15 a.m. livestreamed service, one of the cameras wouldn’t cast an image on the screen. We restarted the computer a few times and reloaded the cameras, but on Sunday morning, we were unable to figure out a solution. This led to the entire service being streamed from the side camera.
As I was fearing we were going to have to take the fancy new camera off the wall and send it somewhere far off to be repaired, all with a wedding in a few days and more church services in the queue, a phone call with tech support came through big time. On Monday, we learned that on the floor of the sound both, there are special boxes that are powered and send that power over ethernet cables to the cameras. Get this: the solution was as simple as unplugging the power to the camera for 30 seconds and then reconnecting. While we had turned off the computer, we had not unplugged the cameras!
Anne Lamott famously wrote, “Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” Sometimes we just need a break, to catch a breath, to decompress. We need a vacation, or lunch with a friend or a late start to work morning. The key is, we must actually unplug. But then we get to try again. And again. And again. And maybe the results are much better when we have had that time away.
In today’s Scripture, Simon Peter has been out fishing all night. He hasn’t had any luck. After spending some time with Jesus on the boat, Jesus instructs Simon to cast his net again. I love Simon Peter’s answer, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” It is hard to tell if Simon Peter either has lost hope, or he recognizes the power of spending time with Jesus. I’ll take the latter for today’s reflection. He follows instructions and is blown away by the haul. “When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break.”
It’s an almost equally impressive miracle that Simon Peter actually tries again. It is far too easy to give up and be defeated by the lack of results. It’s not hard for us to imagine Simon Peter’s angst. The story reminds me of the many people who work tirelessly striving for justice and peace in our communities and feeling like they are getting nowhere, and yet they persevere. They try again, and again.
Maybe they know how to trust Jesus and soak up that good rest we need. Maybe they know about unplugging. It’s ok sometimes to start over. It’s ok to hit CONTROL + ALT + DELETE. Only remember, in doing so it’s starting fresh again.
John+
Questions for Self-Reflection: In what areas of your life are feeling burnt out? How do you restart or recharge? Do you have a plan for self-care?
Daily Challenge: Find thirty minutes today to power off your cell phone.