Power Outage

Camped in front of the fireplace last night. (Read: Didn’t sleep much. *grin*) There we were, watching A Season for Miracles during a windstorm. And the lights flickered. Watched for a bit more and suddenly the TV clicked off. OK. Dark house. The candle I’d lit earlier kept us calm, and the power kicked back on. We flipped through to find our scene in the movie, laughed over the back-and-forth of the great court scene, and click! off went the TV and lights again. And this time the outage lasted all night.

Let the camping begin.

This morning about the time the alarm would have sounded on my cell phone, the power resumed with a whoosh. Lights, furnace, fridge. Our home came back to life.

Power. Oh how we take it for granted. And how we miss it when it’s off.

With power, our home is warm, inviting. There is full access to a stocked fridge (which we leave closed during an outage). And our meal options are at full capacity. We have heat and lights in any room we choose. We can watch movies, rely on alarm clocks and garage door openers.

So, as power zoomed back to life around here this morning, I thought about the parallels with our spiritual lives.

Ever feel like you’re running dry? or cold? or dark? God never shuts down, He never sleeps. So all the outages are on our side.

Circumstances can shut us down with doubts. Where’s God? Why is all this happening?

The wind of trials can knock out our connection and leave us dark and cold. Why isn’t God doing something?! Doesn’t He care?

Time slips by without our plugging into Him and we end up distant, feeling powerless. Our prayers feel dull, like they’re bouncing off the ceiling.

Time for the zoom of God’s power to come rushing back to us and bring warmth, sustenance (remember that fridge full of food?) and light.

While we waited for the lights to come back on, we had to trust in the power company to be on the job and working hard. (Thanks, crew!!) When you’re stuck spiritually, ask God to bring you back. Trust God to bring you back. Seek Him. Get into His presence (through the Word and prayer and worship) and wait on Him. Won’t be long before heat, light, the sweetness of His fellowship, and His power will return.