Unshackled Moments ~ August 21 ~ Automatic Logout

My email address is dalynwoodard@minister.com.  I have this email for two reasons. The first reason is that  it is free, and the second is that I was able to choose minister.com from a list of options rather than being limited to the "hostname".com like I am with Yahoo and Google. I set it up when I became licensed to preach. For the most past I like the service and the function of mail.com, the site that I got the email from. It's easy to navigate. I can set up multiple accounts for various purposes and have them all sent to the one email but divided into separate folders. It doesn't stack replies and conversations in weird ways that make it hard to find emails I need like Google does. The app works great, and there's plenty of storage space.

But there's one thing that I hate about mail.com, and that's the automatic log out. If my browser tab with my email is left open for too long without being used, the internet service is interrupted or the computer goes to sleep, the site logs me out. It's frustrating. It's bad enough this happens. I never log out of Google; it's the best thing about them after the free part. But they don't just log me out and load up the log in page.  My email window doesn't change or close, leaving it up for all to see and a floating box appears to inform me "You have been logged out for security reasons." Beneath that is a button that when clicked is supposed to navigate the user to the log in, except that it doesn't work. So, I have  to type in the addy or use a bookmark to get to the log in page.

Here's why this frustrates me. First, it's  a hassle that the other email companies don't make me go through. I don't use a company or public computer for my email. The only person with access to my computer is Leah, and she has all of my passwords anyway. If she wants to access and read my emails, she's welcome to. So, it's not a security issue for me. Secondly, they know it's not a security issue, and they are lying about their reasons. The premium service allows the user to stay logged in. How is it a security issue with the fee account but not a security issue if I'm paying of for the service? The log in page has the links that they want clicked on, news and such. They want to increase their traffic through these links, and getting the user back at that page is the only reliable way to do that. If it never logged me out, I'd never go to that page again.  So don't lie and say it's about keeping my account safe. There's a page saying to remember to log out for this reason in between loging in and the inbox whenever the automatic logout has kinked in. Finally, what frustrates me about this is how much this frustrates me.

I know it's what they do and why. I know they aren't going to change it. I know I'm not going to pay to prevent having it happen. It's just doesn't take that much time and effort to log back in. So I really need to let it go, and most times I do. But sometimes it just bugs me beyond reason, as in I know that my reaction is neither reasonable, logical or spiritual the right response.

This morning was one of those times, and I came to the realization that at least in this case the cause was my not being where I needed to be spiritually. I have a headache. I didn't sleep well, and the new puppy is crying because I won't let her out to play. All of these are distracting me from my reading and prayer time. I loaded my email in order to access the daily link to Biblegateway that allows me to choose a reading plan and translation to do my daily Bible reading online. I wanted to start with the Bible this morning, and the email mess slowed my progress. Frustration hit. Then I hard that voice that sounds like me but has far too much understanding and wisdom to be me say you're being foolish. Letting something you know is going to happen every morning upset you is not showing wisdom. The fact is that the problem is not their policy but that you have allowed yourself to be automatically logged out of conscious contact with God.

Oh wow. What a wake up call to my condition and position that was. It's true. That's what had happened, and it happens far too often. I know that I am not the only one that it happens to, and it doesn't have to happen. Ideally it's not supposed to happen. But it does. Our old nature, our flesh, uses any chance and every excuse to log us out of our spiritual account and take us to the place where we have to set ourselves to seek the awareness of the presence of God, to make the choice to log in or get distracted by another link. It's not about security, and the reason is hidden in lies.

It's because of what's happening. It's someone else's fault. God logged us out, kicked us out of His presence, or just isn't with us and doesn't want to be. If we live better, do better, pay more this won't happen. All lies, and not close to all the possible lies about the automatic logout.  The truth is that paying more or earning won't help, and it doesn't matter what we're going through we have access to Daddy because we are His children. The truth is that there is a way to keep the automatic logout from activating, or at least keep it from happening as often.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

- 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Pray without ceasing. The same thing that works with mail.com works spiritually. If I am actively using the account, I don't get logged out. Now, I can't do this, in either case. But by grace I can come closer to doing it spiritually. If I stay focused on Him and my awareness of who He is, His will for me and His presence, if I am going through my day attentive to the possibility that He wants to speak to me and listening for His message, that is an attitude of prayer that is active and helps prevent the automatic logout my flesh wishes to engage. The grace and love of God gives us free access to the presence of God, but if we don't keep our attention on Him, taking our heart and life to Him and listening and looking for Him in our day, our flesh, which by the way hates that we left it to die, will try to break our connection with our Creator and distract us away to something outside of where we need to be.

We don't have to succumb to the automatic logout, but sometimes we do. We can't perfectly walk in the fullness of the grace available. So, when the logout occurs and we find ourselves staring at the old home page, with its news and adds and distractions from the truth and love we were needing to access, it's not a time to get frustrated, nor a time to believe the lies about why it happened and fall for the idea that we aren't wanted and loved by Daddy, or a time to try to do better, pray better, walk better etc.. It's most definitely not time to check out any of the links. Simply log back in by grace,

username - ChildoftheLivingGod
password - BloodofJesusfreelypouredoutforme



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