My Hard Disk Died. Thank God...

Its power supply died suddenly.

Of course, I was a bit exasperated. My precious backups are gone! It's one thing for your data to be gone... but it's really another thing for your backups to go to that Great Bit-Bucket In The Sky.

But after a while, I thought about it. 1 Thess 5:16-18 spoke to me: "Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

I wonder what God may be speaking to me through this experience?

Perhaps He wants to use this hard disk's death to remind me of the sheer evanescence of life. Life goes on the way we expect it to, until suddenly, one day, it just dies. That my power supply is in His hand, and He can remove it, or allow it to be removed, any time He chooses.

Everything is so impermanent. Even heaven and earth will fade. But, Jesus' words will never pass away.

So this incident reminds me that all my possessions and wealth will eventually be shaken, but my relationship with God can never be shaken, and my joy can never be taken.

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our "God is a consuming fire."

And another thing that 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 reminded me is that there is always something to be thankful all the same. That I have a better-working hard disk, and the important data are still all there. That I have the skill of being able to rescue data, with powerful software to boot. Praise God indeed.

Then, God also helped me see my natural instinct. My natural instinct, when frustrated, is to look for someone to pin the blame on. I immediately thought my sister might have something to do with it, and I was angry at her. When it turned out that it wasn't her fault after all, my next target was the hard-disk manufacturer. But God showed me that this is a sin that I tend to commit - wanting to foist the blame onto somebody. For all we know, it may be nobody's fault at all. And even if it was, why am I angry?

So when I repented before God, James 1:19-21 came to mind, correcting me:

My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.

Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

Amen! Thanks so much Daddy for Your correction... :)

Then think another thing I learnt from this experience is how do I respond when I face a personal loss. Do I panic, or do I pray? My initial response was to be dismayed. But I forgot to pray to God to keep my data safe. I could have just taken a few minutes to ask God for a solution to this problem. For all I know, He may give me a better solution in mind.

So thank God indeed for this lesson in learning to rely on Him in every situation. To ask Him to guide my thinking even as I act. Pray and act, act and pray. The two go hand in hand together. So I believe God may be teaching me to acknowledge His wisdom in this way. "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths."

Amen! May I learn to trust in the Lord with all my heart, more and more daily! God is wise and faithful! Hallelujah! :D