I have officially gone without a phone for one week.
Unfortunately, this is not due to some social experiment or a technology fast. Nope. My phone is buried deep in snowy powder atop the mountain in Crested Butte, Colorado. Word to the wise, always make sure ALL of your pockets are zipped before hitting the slopes.
Thankfully we have phone insurance through our service provider, though the 1-2 day delivery promise has turned into seven. So, here I sit without a phone. When I tell people why they haven’t been able to reach me, many have said, “I can’t imagine!” or “This must be awful!”
In the grand scheme of things, it’s really not a big deal. I have my computer, so I still have access to email and I’m still able to do my job. Though, I understand why people find it hard to think about life without a phone. We spend the majority of our day on our phones, and I honestly believed, just like everyone else, that no one would be able to get a hold of me and everything would fall apart if I didn’t have that cellular device.
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To my surprise, that has not been the case. In fact, I have felt an incredible sense of freedom in this last week. Yes, there are moments of frustration, though overall, I am happy and getting along wonderfully without it. Wait… Life goes on without a cell phone?! Fascinating.
As I reflected on all of this earlier today, I realized something. I believe so many of us are holding onto things in our lives that we simply cannot imagine losing or going without. A job, a relationship, a substance like alcohol or a drug, or even our homes. We have come to believe that without certain staples in our lives, we would not be whole.
We have come to believe that we need so much. But do we?
And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Luke 9:58
If Jesus had little on earth, I think it was so He could focus on the mission that was in front of Him. Aren’t we on a similar mission?
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. Matthew 28:19-20
Jesus needed little on earth. Though, somehow, we need so much. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound right to me.
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I am beginning to understand that life is really a long game of tug-of-war for our hearts and our minds. The world is constantly pulling on us, telling us all the products, the lifestyles, the relationships, the homes, and the money we need to find true joy and happiness.
On the other side of the rope is our Creator, and He is fighting for us, too. Though, He isn’t holding a long grocery list of things we must acquire for a full life. He is simply offering Himself, arms wide open. And He says, “I. Am. Enough.”
Do we really believe that? Or are we being tricked by the voice of the world, lying to us about all that we need? Meanwhile, we are distracted and have lost sight of the mission, holding onto things and people that ultimately bring us down.
I’m writing about this because this is something I have struggled with and continue to struggle with. I am constantly having to refocus my heart on the Lord and be reminded that no matter what I have or don’t have, no matter who cares about me or doesn’t care about me, I am in a relationship with Jesus Christ. And that is enough.
Losing my phone at the beginning of the year might have been the best way to kick it off.
I pray that we, as a body of believers, would desire time with Him more than we desire time off for vacation. I pray that we would desire to tell others about the name of Jesus more than we would desire for others to know our name. I pray that we would desire less of this world, and more of the next.
For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. Hebrews 13:14
C.S. Lewis said, “If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”
I pray we would understand how little we need, how little this world is actually satisfying us, and how great the world that is coming will be. May this change how we live the rest of our short days.
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Caitlin Jordan is the assistant editor for TheCourage. While she loves small towns and the great outdoors, she lives with her husband, Ryan, in the big city of Dallas, Texas. She is passionate about the importance of transparency and loving those that disagree with Christian beliefs. You can follow her on Facebook and Twitter.
