“Just letting you know, we are leaving for the cabin on Friday morning and won’t be back until Monday evening. So we will be off the grid.”
“Got it! Have fun!”
My associate owns a cabin in the nearby mountains. Every few months, she and her family spend an extended weekend there. The photographs she has shared with me depict an idyllic setting of a log cabin nestled in dense foliage. It has everything one would need to physically and emotionally recharge. It also has no internet connection. Even their cell phones do not work. They have a landline which they use for emergencies and a select number of close family members and friends have the number in case of an emergency. Otherwise, there is not even a television or radio. They are completely cut off from the outside world and off the grid.
I have never attempted to do what my colleague regularly does and I am unsure if I could. Running my own business, concern for family members and friends-many of the reasons that I give would probably apply to most of us. However, the appeal of spending time alone with my family with no other distractions is appealing. Recently, I had the opportunity to do this with a week-long vacation and road trip.
For much of the trip, we had no internet connection. We had each other and beheld the beauty of God’s creation as we toured the National Parks of Zion, Bryce, Antelope Valley, and the Grand Canyon. At the end of the day, when we returned to our hotel room with an internet connection, we caught up on text messages, emails, and news. Did I miss anything urgent? There were some small fires to put out but overall, getting off the grid was not as painful as I dreaded. What about my spiritual life? Can I ever go off the grid with God?
When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the LORD God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the LORD God among the trees. Then the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”
Genesis 3:8-9 (NLT)
Since the beginning, mankind has unsuccessfully attempted to go off grid with God. After Adam and Eve sinned for the first time, they were overcome with guilt and shame. They had chosen to follow their own paths and succumbed to Satan’s temptation. In a pathetic and futile action, they attempted to hide from God, to disconnect from Him and go off grid.
When God asks us, ”Where are you?” He is not confused and uncertain about our location. The question is directed toward us. Where are we going if we choose not to follow God, our Creator? To whom will we follow? God honors our time to go off the grid, to recharge and regenerate, but during these times, He did not create us to go off the grid from Him. When we go off the grid, it is to give us an opportunity to seek God and draw closer to Him. Even our Lord, Jesus Christ, spent time alone, in prayer and conversation with His Heavenly Father, as He sought guidance and wisdom from Him.
Off the grid means leaving this world behind so that we may experience more of God’s world.
Amen!
Love and trust in the Lord; seek His will in your life.
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