When I received a call the screen flashed and vibrated and lit up with the name and number of the caller. The buttons to accept or reject the call even danced around. I spent the better part of a week trying to rid myself of the vibrating visual virus and the ad at the end of the phone call. It seemed every free moment I had was spent with the phone trying to figure out where the virus was hiding. I tried every computer trick I knew, which is about three. The virus defeated me.
I took the phone back to the mother ship and told them I had infected my phone. They took the phone with the confidence of people in their 20’s and they worked with it. After I showed them what was happening, and after they made the phone do the same thing, they said, “It appears you have a virus.”
“Duh, really?”
They worked on the phone for a while and the virus defeated them too. Since I refused to ignore the pesky virus I had only two other options. Option number one was obvious, purchase a new phone. I was in the phone store and looking at the latest in spiffy technology. I was thinking about the commandment which says, “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s new phone.” After looking at the prices of the new phones, I decided on the more practical option number two.
Option number two was and is factory reset. I went through the process and reset the phone.
I saved everything, I think.
The virus is gone, but so are all my contacts. So if you call or text me and I ask, “Who is this?” Do not be offended at my lack of recognition; I have a “factory reset” phone.
The virus is gone!
There are times in our lives when we need to reboot. Sometimes we need to dump the garbage out of the system and start over. I don’t know what reboot means for you, but I know that some systems can’t be fixed. They must be dumped.
That is what Jesus meant by sharking the dust off of your feet. There are times when quitting, when giving up, or when walking away is the Godly course of action. Think about how much time we waste on things that bring us no lasting joy, nor are contributors to our daily walk with Christ. It is true that in shaking the dust off of your feet you are going to lose some things; perhaps they are very precious to you. The end result of having a clean slate and a fresh start may overwhelm any loss you might experience.
The other Biblical image for “factory reset” is the word repentance. It means to change your mind and go in a different direction. Working harder is often not the way to fix what is broken. There are times when you must follow the old cowboy adage.
When the horse is dead, dismount.
That was what resetting my phone taught me this week.