It
started like any other day—until I looked at my computer screen. Apparently,
the message had been waiting for me all night, ever since I had supposedly shut
it down. “Reboot by inserting boot device or insert media device, reboot, and
strike any key.”
I
didn’t have any such items and after several texts to my computer-competent
sons, pushing the computer’s shut-off button and hitting control-alt-delete more
than once, to no avail, I decided to take it to a repair shop.
The
end result was, “We weren’t able to retrieve any data from your hard drive,
even after putting it in the freezer.” Yes, that does sometimes do the
trick for comatose hard drives. But not for mine.
It
was like a death in the family. No Google searches for a recipe or the distance
from point A to point B or looking up obscure facts just for curiosity’s sake. And
no FaceBook!
You
might ask, “Did you have any of your data backed up?” Fortunately, a copy of the
first draft of a book I’ve just written was on a thumb drive. Otherwise, the
thought of backing up data had not crossed my mind since I retired from my
office job twelve years ago.
I
hadn’t really considered anything worth saving—until it was gone. Three years
of pictures, three short stories, some poems, and tributes I’d written for
loved ones who have died. Yes, I’m sorry I didn’t have a back-up plan.
Obviously,
it makes good sense to back up your data in case your hard drive crashes. Unlike
a computer hard drive, however, your soul never dies. Until you leave your
“earth suit” you can still choose your system/destination.
The
Bible tells us in Romans 6:23 “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God
is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Jesus paid our sin debt on a
cross so that we could choose life in heaven with him. Of course, we can ignore
this awesome gift of life Christ has made possible. Spending eternity separated
from God’s love in hell doesn’t sound like a good back up plan to me.
I
hope it doesn’t appeal to you either.
