staying plugged-in to God this summer

Summer break is probably one of the best times for a student. There is no school. No teachers. No homework. And plenty of time for God. Just because your school year has ended does not mean the growth you experienced throughout the year in your relationship with God has to end.

To illustrate this point, let’s look at a couple of items you probably own: a cell phone, i-pod, television or desktop computer. What do you and these things have in common? Do you know?

They all have to be plugged in at some point to function or continue functioning. Let’s take a closer at a couple of those items. First, let’s look at your desktop computer. You probably use it for many different things daily. But if the plug is not connected to the socket or power source, the computer is useless, functionless.

Now, let’s look at your cell phone. It does not have to be plugged in all the time for you to use it, but it can only go for so long before you have to plug it in and recharge it. You and your life are the same way. In contrast, you are the computer or cell phone and God is the socket or power source. You have to plug into God to keep you and your life functional.

So, what does it mean to plug into God. Let’s look at our examples again. Each one of the items has a cord and plug, or in other words an object that connects the particular item to the socket or power source through which the power flows to them. In our case, we have things in our lives that connect us to God (who is our power source) and allows His power to flow to us.

There are four things that I consider to be the “cord and plug” in our lives – our ways of connecting to God and His power. They are:

1. The Bible – You connect to God through the Bible by reading and studying it on a regular basis.

2. Prayer – You connect to God by praying or talking to Him on a regular basis.

3. Praise – You connect to God when you praise and thank Him for things He has done for you and your family.

4. The Local Church – You connect to God by attending church regularly, paying attention to what is taught and applying it to your life.

Now that we have identified the “cords and plugs”, lets talk about one more contrast to our original example. Remember your desktop computer. To function properly, it has to be consistently plugged in at all times. But your cell phone could function without being plugged in, but can only go so long before it needs to be plugged in and recharged.

The first three things are like your computer. For your life to function as it is supposed to, you should be reading your bible, praying and praising God consistently, daily. Attending your local church is more like your cell phone, which is where you go to get a recharge.

With all the free time you will have over the summer, I encourage you to intentionally develop a habit to make sure you plug into God daily and you are getting recharged at your local church each time the doors open.

If you got up the next morning to check your Facebook page, but the computer did not come on when you hit the power button, what would be the first thing you would do? Probably check to see if it is plugged in. Now that you have checked your computer, you should also check yourself. So before you start your day, ask yourself, “Am I plugged in?” Or in other words, “Have I connected to God this morning?”