I’m spending some time away with our church’s pastoral team. We’re working on some strategy and planning while away from the office. We’re at a retreat center in the mountains which means I have no cell service.
No service.
Those are two of my least favorite words in the English language.
No service means I can’t constantly check Twitter to see what memes and conversations I’m missing.
No service means I can’t constantly check my blog stats to see if I’m keeping up with last week’s pace.
No service means I can’t send text messages to my friends about the funny yet somewhat offensive thoughts that cross my mind.
No service means I can’t pour over Facebook statuses, trying to find those for which I have a funny comment that hopefully someone else will appreciate and like.
No service means I can’t constantly check the Internet for new stories about the Cubs and examine every detail of every insight.
No service means I can’t do a lot of things. But no service also opens me up to a lot of opportunities.
No service means I can fully engage with the discussions we’re having about our church and how God wants to direct us.
No service means I can spend time involved in actual conversations with the people I’m with instead of virtual conversations with people somewhere else.
No service means I can quiet the outside distractions to better focus on the quiet voice of God inside.
No service means I can stop finding value in my blog stats and start finding value in my relationships and the people I work with.
No service means I can play a game sitting at a table with people instead of killing pigs or playing words with virtual friends.
No service doesn’t happen very often which is why it can be a little scary. When those two words pop up we can feel like an astronaut who has just been cut loose from the ship. If we can get past that initial fear, though, we’ll see that no service is giving us more than it’s taking away.
Now I just have to find a way to post this.
How do you respond to no service?
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