fragmentation/de-fragmentation

I understand almost nothing about computers----I just want them to work and get frustrated when they do not.  Nor do I have the vaguest clue as to what I should do when they do not work.

For months, I have been getting a message from someone in cyber-space, telling me that I was using an outdated server that g-mail no longer supports and therefore, that some features of g-mail might not work.  I had successfully ignored the message for some time, and suffered no consequences, except that I was not allowed to comment on the blogs of my friends, nor even respond to comments on my own blog---a small price to pay.

Finally, however, the persistent message began to make me wonder what I was missing by not "updating" my server to the latest technology, the biggest, and the best, that Explorer 8 had to offer, and I ultimately caved in to the offer to bring me into the 21st century.  (In high school, my favorite teacher, Mr. Ryan, used to say, "If you throw enough mud against the side of the barn, some of it is bound to stick."  Now I understand his home-spun wisdom.)

You probably already know the rest of the story, as Paul Harvey used to say:  I pushed all the buttons that would convert my computer to something bigger and better----and as a result, my computer now runs more slowly, balks at my simple commands, and occasionally shuts itself down altogether in the middle of something important.  To my knowledge, I have gained no advantage in exchange for the inconvenience.  There is nothing greater I can do now than what I could do before; it's just more slow and more cumbersome and more frustrating now to complete the same tasks.

I know that now my computer probably needs to be "de-fragmented," whatever that means, and that I will probably have to take it to an expert to have it serviced.  From the term "de-fragmented," I have to assume that whatever just happened "fragmented" my computer, making it less efficient than it was before the "update."

All of which has made me reflect on how sin operates on our spirits---we are moving along with the joy and innocence of childhood, when we begin to receive messages that tempt us to "update," to "become more relevant," to experiment with "something better" than we now have---we can have the whole world of technology, fun, pleasure, power at our fingertips; we can be "in control;" we can be "like gods!"

At first, we are hesitant; we wonder, "What's the cost?"  "Can this harm me?"  "Is it dangerous?"

"Of course not," says the hidden voice from beyond; everyone is doing it---no harm; no problem.  It's just an "upgrade."  And when we eventually yield, against our better judgment, we find ourselves fragmented, less efficient, less able to focus, to perform the usual tasks.  Our energy is going to repair the damage instead of going forward.  We are fragmented.

"Blessed are the pure of heart," said Jesus, "for they shall see God."

But sin fragments us; we are no longer pure of heart; we can no longer see God. 
Our souls need de-fragmenting; we need cleansing from the impurities that have entered with our permission; we need a Technician whose clear vision and understanding can restore proper functioning to our lives.

Blessed be God; it has been given to us in Christ Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!