I hate my computer and other inspirational thoughts
The New Year has not started out very well for Yours Truly.
After the first day of the new year, my life went south for the
rest of the winter. All I can say is, I hope it has a wonderful
winter, and don’t forget to write.
Speaking of writing, I can sum up my feelings at this moment by
saying, “I hate my computer.”
Perhaps, you may think the word “hate” a little too strong.
Under normal circumstances, I would agree wholeheartedly. These,
however, are not normal circumstances by a long shot.
And, believe me, I’ve been tempted to do some shooting.
Usually, I’m good-natured, and easily get along with everyone
around me. I go out of my way to be nice and courteous to people.
At the grocery store, I always hold the door open for people; on
the highway, I always yield to the other driver, without
employing hand gestures; and in a restaurant ,I always smile at
the waitress, no matter how much she messes up my order.
However, everything and everyone has a limit and I have
reached my limit in this matter. The new near has barely gotten
underway and already a snag has raised its ugly head in my
direction and grinned. And boy, do I despise that grin.
This snag, to put it mildly, has to do with my computer. Oh, how
I miss my old typewriter at times. It was such a faithful
companion to me in my work. Rarely did it disappoint me or let
me down. It always responded to the slightest touch of my
fingers.
Then the sad day came when I traded my old reliable typewriter
in for a computer. At the time, I thought I had upgraded into
heaven. I did not know I was setting myself up for a crash. How
could I? Everyone told me a computer would solve all my problems.
In the beginning, it lulled me into a false sense of competency.
It actually made me believe I was in control of my computer.
And, for a while, it looked like I was.
This past week I was working on several projects. With my
computer, I can have three projects open at the same time and
work on them simultaneously. I was working on my Sunday sermon,
my weekly column and a fantastic article I was writing for a
magazine.
I was in high heaven, going from one project to another and
making wonderful progress. In fact, I was having such a great
time that I forgot to save any of my work.
Several times during my work that afternoon I heard a
mischievous snicker coming from somewhere, but I was having too
much fun to pay attention to it. In hindsight, I should have
stopped right there and pondered the situation.
The sermon I was working on was simply marvelous. I can never
remember being in greater sermonic form. Everything just seemed
to flow. The ideas opened up right before my eyes, which truly
delighted me.
I could not wait to preach this sermon come Sunday morning. I
was quite sure my congregation would be delighted with this
masterpiece.
When the ideas slowed in the sermon preparation, I simply jumped
over to the weekly column and began working on it. Like the
sermon, the column was going fantastic. I couldn’t believe the
roll I was on at the time.
There are times when you know what you’re doing is good. Then
there are times when you know what you’re doing is great. I had
never had a column come together so smoothly and quickly as this
one. My readers will be awed with such eloquence.
When I was stuck on my column, I switched over to the magazine
article I was writing. In a few moments, I was completely
emerged in writing the article. Like the sermon and column
before it, the article unfolded before me like a rose in June. I
luxuriated in the aroma of greatness.
By this time, I was feeling pretty good about myself. This
should have been a flashing red light for me. In my defense, I
was assuming the new year brought new rules for me.
I’ve given it an awful lot of thought; I do not know what
happened next.
But, evidently, I pressed a button I should not have pressed. In
the next second, my computer shut off completely. For several
minutes, I just stared, dumbfounded, at my blank computer screen
one blank to another.
When I came to my senses, I restarted my computer. No matter how
diligently I searched, those three files were nowhere to be
found. The question plaguing my tortured mind was, do files that
are not saved go to hell? They surely were not on my computer.
The thing bothering me the most was, I could not remember the
details of my sermon, my column, or the terrific article I was
writing. It was as if my magnificent trio did not exist.
In pondering my quandary, a scripture verse came to mind.
“Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he
fall. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common
to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be
tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation
also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” (1
Corinthians 10:12-13 KJV.)
No matter how difficult my life seems, Jesus is the “escape key”
that enables me to endure.
