Insert your batteries correctly

Personal Photo by Shannon Deppen: I took this photo while snorkeling in Maui. This sea turtle was missing a whole fin. A victim of an attack. But he never let it slow him down and was one of the most beautiful creatures I have ever seen. He didn't let it stop him. :)

It has been a beautiful week here in sunny Ohio! This weekend we are supposed to get some rain, though, so it will be a good chance for us to stay inside and get some work done and maybe get to relax a little bit. The idea of a rainy weekend sounds so cozy to me; a chance to slow it down, to quiet everything around us, and to settle into a little bubble of peace before a new week. It truly has been a busy time, with trying to move, Clay working crazy hours, travel plans, and more, sometimes I find myself at the end of the day just exhausted and drained. Like my battery is running low and a hot shower, some food, and rest would do me good. It always does do my body good, and it lets it heal from being depleted all day. The idea of us as humans having figurative batteries is an interesting one and this week, I wanted to look beyond our energy batteries and dial in on our spiritual batteries.

Okay, I know I cannot be the only one that always puts actual batteries in wrong. I mean, every time I put batteries in something, I have to try it at least twice before I get it to work. When I began exploring how to think about how our spiritual batteries work, I think it is safe to say that they are not only often depleted but can easily be switched around in our brains so that part of us can't function. Just like we so often put the batteries in our toys and lights wrong, we can easily do it when we get up in the morning with our spiritual batteries. Let's talk about them being depleted first. We have so many things that we have to do every week. People count on us for work, we have to go to school, we have exams and sports and food to make and homes to clean and appointments to keep, and things to buy. We need to do these things, and we can quickly find ourselves not making time for church, not making time to read the Bible, not making time to pray before we fall asleep and when we wake up. God doesn't schedule an appointment with us, cost us money, or have a due date. And while these are admirable qualities, it does mean that we can often shove Him aside and give Him what is left of ourselves (if anything) when we finish everything else. In this way, our spiritual batteries never get recharged. If we never make time for God, how can we expect an intimate relationship with Him throughout everything we do? Well, the short answer is that we can't.

Our spiritual batteries, when inserted correctly, are what harbor the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 6:19 asks us "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?" When the Holy Spirit is not given any room in our hearts, we find distance between us and the Father, we find that we struggle with the day-to-day, we find that the world's negativity, evils, and sin are all right there to sweep us off our feet, make us stumble in our journey with Christ, and demand time away from God. The Holy Spirit can guide us toward the light, encourage us to make the right decisions, support our walks with Him, and so on, which is why it is so important to make sure that we are recharging our spiritual batteries every chance we get. When we give, we get and when we get, we want to give. This balance is important in our lives.

Now that we have taken a moment to consider how quickly our spiritual batteries are drained, I want to zoom in on how when this happens, the negativity that is all around us can cause us to subconsciously insert our batteries wrong, squelching any chance for us to use the energy, power, and light that God shines and gives to us. My mom ran across this quote from Lou Holtz years ago and it really applies to my point here: "Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you respond to it." The fact of the matter is that life is difficult, the world is full of sin, and the devil is going to try to stop us at every turn. These things do not change and will not change until Jesus comes back to earth. And while we may know that these things are true, it might still be a challenge for us to respond to what happens to us with grace. How do we do this? How do we take the 90% of life and make it a chance for us to give glory to God?

Positivity.

Yes, the answer is positivity. My most favorite people here on earth are the kindest, most genuine, most positive, people. When I am around them, I am positive. When I think about them, my heart warms up. Yes, our spiritual batteries are often depleted. Yes, we all can work on making sure we get the spiritual food we need. But why? Why do we do this, why do we make time for God, why do we go to church, why do we yearn for an intimacy with the Lord? Because we can do our best work when our batteries are full. We can respond to life's curveballs with grace and love when our batteries are full. Because we can stay positive and see God's hand working through everything. Because we can stay calm in our Father's love amidst the chaos of this world.

However, we cannot just have full batteries in order to do all of these things. We need full batteries, and they need to be put in correctly. We can go to church, pray, and be around friendly people, but if we do not allow God any space in our hearts, He cannot change the way we see and interact with this world. The reason it relates so well to batteries is because of the way that we can balance out the negativity in our lives with our own positivity. If we do not combat the world's evil chaos with God's light and love, we find ourselves sinking, unable to function, unable to handle the weight that life puts on us. Even if our battery is full, we can see life in through a gloomy lens, let our sour attitudes taint the way we interact with others, and diminish the chances we have to do the Lord's work. What good is a full battery if it is not inserted correctly? We need to let the Holy Spirit change the way we view the world. We know the world is evil, but God's light conquers the devil and when we change our perspective to focus on the ways in which God is working for good always, we can really find that our recharged batteries, inserted correctly, help us give the most glory to Him. 2 Corinthians 3:17 tells us "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." We can be free from all the negativity that this world breeds when we give the Holy Spirit space in our hearts by making sure our batteries are charged and inserted correctly.

My point still stands that we need both in order to do the best work for the Lord. In the same way that we cannot just charge our batteries and insert them wrong, we also cannot insert dead batteries the right way and expect the best results. We can be positive, but not have that joy rooted in our faith. We quickly find that this positivity is shallow, it fades quickly, and we cannot sustain it through the turbulence we are bound to face. Therefore, it is important for us to remember that charging our batteries goes hand in hand with inserting them correctly. In this way, we can let our gratitude for God's love infiltrate every part of our lives and we can appreciate every step in our journeys, even the hard ones. Psalm 118:24 reminds us that "This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Every day is a gift from God, even the hard ones. Remembering this will help us submit to the Lord's plan instead of trying to run the show ourselves, and it will strengthen our faith in His promises and in His word. We can see His grace working every day, we can share the love of God with those around us, and we can embrace the person that God crafted us to be. Making sure our full batteries are inserted correctly will change the way we interact with people, will encourage us to give of ourselves, and we will find ourselves in a more intimate relationship with Christ. We are told in Philippians 4:4-7 to "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Truly, positivity rooted in God's love and joy is unstoppable and we can find ourselves at peace amidst the chaos of our lives.

Unfortunately, we live in a world where disappointment, sadness, evil, anger, and more similar emotions prowl. It can be a challenge for us to really strip away the torment of the reality around us and find joy. For example, when wars happen, loved ones die, and people let hatred consume them, negativity can really bring us down and make us question how we are supposed to help, understand, and grow without fear. The heaviness of this world is very real and I think it is important to note that we do not always need to be happy, but instead we need to focus on trusting in God's plan, knowing that Jesus is coming back to save His children, and that the evils will not win. Isaiah 12:2 tells us "Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation." Trusting without fear is how we can let the Holy Spirit change the way we view the world. Instead of losing ourselves in our despair, we can find peace within His embrace, knowing that every day we are a day closer to meeting Him face to face and that we spent that day living a life for Him and with Him. This is the way we can make sure our batteries are inserted correctly. As long as we are able to trust in God and find hope in His plan and His word, we are ensuring that our charged batteries are in the proper place.

Throughout the chaos that we all endure, the ups and downs, the fatigue and the energy, we can find ourselves not making time to recharge. In this way, our spiritual batteries can get drained, we can get frazzled, and we can let our relationship with God fade into the background. However, I am hopeful that this is something we can remind ourselves to focus on and make time for. By recharging our batteries, it sets us up with the tools to make sure they are inserted correctly, and it gives the Holy Spirit the room He needs to allow us to find hope rooted in God in every situation we find ourselves in. Our spiritual batteries, inserted correctly, are what give us the energy to fight off the negativity in this world, to put on the armor of God every day, and to shine the light that God harbors within us so that we can give glory to His name.