Saturday nights were awful for the manager on call at Coca Cola. And the
later it got into the evening, or earlier into the morning, the more chance of a
service call was possible. Until we came up with a simple sticker, eliminating
many calls, and solving a problem. The sticker simply read, '”IS IT PLUGGED
IN?” And we were surprised at how the call volume dropped, all by one simple
reminder. Years later with all of our hard earned credit, we bought a 1992 Ford
Ranger pick-up. Which ran great for a few days, then whenever you put it in
reverse, it would stall. Reminding me of how many times a day we go backward.
It had been in the shop long enough to qualify for a buyback, when Burke the
service manager, told me, “get in, we’re going for a ride.” Reluctantly we did,
and after 20 minutes of backing up in various situations, he told me they had
solved the problem. It seemed that every time the truck was put in reverse, the
linkage put a strain on the wiring harness to the ECM, engine control module,
and it pulled away slightly, causing the truck to stall. Out of reverse, no
strain, plug connected, and it ran. Finally someone had thought to check if it
was plugged in! And after rerouting the harness correctly, problem and symptom
solved.
Years later when at Mercedes Benz, we would get cars towed in when the
shifter lever would be stuck in park. The housing was electrical, we referred
to it as a joy stick, and when something was spilled into it, like your latte,
it would ground out, cause the car to be stuck in park, and it was an easy $700
repair, that the customer was responsible for. Not a factory defect, although
the cup holder was placed above it, and one time when a woman went into meltdown
over it, I told her to take it up with Starbucks, it was their latte, their
problem and she left smiling. Never did find out the outcome of that one, all I
was sure of was that it was customer error, and not a defect.
In our electronic age, I am amazed we don’t have more problems. With power
grids overloaded, resulting in brown outs, a precursor to a black out, we are
run by electronics, which run computers, which have an eerie impact on our daily
lives. I can remember years ago when we had a power outage in Jersey, effecting
the entire NY metro area, after it was over the popular opening line was “where
were you when the lights went out?” And the clever answer of Pat was “at the
switch.” The rest of us were too panic stricken to laugh, but someone had to be
at the switch, didn’t they? And it can be scary, as Andrew and Theresa were
stuck in Times Square years ago when the power went out, only the grace of God
got them back to New Jersey and safety. I had never thought of Jersey as a safe
haven up to that point. And so we battle against things we cannot see, things
we cannot understand, but still are ready to blame someone else for our
situations.
2000 years ago, God was way ahead of us on the electric grid, and needless
to say the spiritual one too. The writer of Hebrews warns us that we fight not
against man, or each other, but against powers and principalities. Just like
the electric current that we cannot see that provides us with power, there is a
battle in the heavenlies between Satan’s angels and those of God’s. Even a
hierarchy with evil prince’s in control over cities, and you wonder why we are
slipping into the toilet of society every day. But yet we tend to blame others,
those we can see who are weaker, or in power, but have no authority, causing
strife amongst ourselves. When the real enemy is Satan, on borrowed time, as we
Jesus has won the war for us, even declaring from the cross, “it is finished.”
Yet with souls yet to be saved, the daily battles continue, and if not plugged
into Jesus, you can be part of the problem, or even a victim, even if saved.
Satan’s lies sound so good, and since all lies are based on truth, he can twist
a few words for his advantage, and you can become a victim. Sometimes without
even knowing it. So beware, we are told to be as “wise as a serpent, but as
gentle as a lamb,” and also to know that the battle belongs to the Lord. Let
Him fight it-His record is perfect!
In the future it is possible that cyber wars will be fought
rather than ground wars. Just look at my examples, and look at Obamacare’s web
site. One web site shutting down, or at least crippling the federal government,
and no one is to blame. And in everyday life when we see a web site down, it
causes problems. Let your i-pad lose power, you can access nothing-and it all
comes to a screeching halt. A battle of things not seen, but essential for
everyday living in our society today. But there is hope for those turning to
Christ. He will protect us in battle, we all know the famous armor in
Ephesians. But a key component to the armor is that it must be worn. And
another is the back is left unprotected-you are to face your attacker in Christ,
He will protect you and win the battle. He even has our back! No booting of
our relationship, no pause for repairs, or forgotten password. His system, the
Holy Spirit is infallible, and on call 24/7. Who is your firewall? Who
protects you from spammers? Who died for you? The only answer is Jesus.
So when trouble strikes, are you plugged into Jesus? Or are you
still looking for the solution to life’s problems. God made it simple, believe
in Jesus with all your heart, and confess Him with your mouth and you are
saved. If only computers worked so easily. Stay plugged into Jesus via
prayer-daily, reading your Bible-daily, and regular fellowship with other
believers. Do not let your guard down, for Satan is a lion wishing to consume
you, hoping to make you his latest victim. Remember who our enemy is, not
others but the prince of darkness, but more importantly keep your eyes upon
Jesus. For where your eyes look, you will follow. Now take one last look at
your power cords, and stay plugged into Jesus.
Remember it was God who said “let there be light.” Don’t be
afraid to let yours shine for Him. Only if you are plugged into His source.
Are you plugged in?
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com