Where from here?#6. “Unplugged.”

The recent Facebook blackout raised more than a few eyebrows.

One had to wonder how such a leading Tech-giant could be shut down at all. Surely all the best online engineers work for them, anyway.

Some have said it must have been an inside job, and others have pointed the finger at hackers. I’m sure there are logical reasons, but one thing we can all agree on is that the millions upon millions of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp users were unceremoniously unplugged. Information and direct communication channels died a sudden, albeit brief, death.

We have all seen Christian blackouts. Of course, it is inexcusable when precious souls can shutdown and slip away without raising concern.

Never should we think that it doesn’t happen at “our church.” There is just too much evidence to the contrary to dispel that myth.

Believe it or not, churches do have the best people to help the weak and struggling. The Holy Spirit gives churches what they need when they need it.

If we feel we do not have the resources to do the job, then it is likely that one, or both, of the following problems are present: The first being that the people available are being deliberately hindered from helping, and/or the other being that the congregation really doesn’t want to fix the problem.

When saints fall away, is it the fault of the congregation? At whom do we point the fingers?

Churches are living organisms. To suggest that things cannot go horribly wrong is to defy the course of history. Information and direct communication channels can die a sudden, and sometimes permanent, death in churches too.

The best way to keep each other plugged into the Lord and His church is to secure our own spiritual connections. You can’t stop someone from walking away, but you can make sure that you have done all you can to keep them plugged into Jesus.

John Staiger