What do you do when you get hacked?

Yes, I know all about being hacked.

I have read dozens of articles about what to do when you get hacked.

And…well, I can tell you what I did…but I’m not proud of it and I don’t advise it.

I quit…simply quit.

I didn’t quit on the first time…or the second time. But when the hackers locked me out the third time, I simply quit blogging. I cleaned it up. I installed a clean, fresh WordPress file, purchased a new template, deleted all my plugins and started fresh. The website had to be cleaned up. I couldn’t leave it that way, but the hackers won. For six months I didn’t write at all.

I felt like my life was being hacked too.

Caring for a sick family member. Closing a business. Closing old chapters in my life that were way over due was really hard!

I was white-knuckling things that were precious to me!

But now I realize, those “precious things” that I was trying so hard to keep were clutter keeping me from God’s best.

So, why am I mentioning this now?

Because I got hacked again!

(I am so sorry! If you came to my site on Saturday and had to run a virus scan on your computer, I am so sorry!)

It was a bad hack. But, what I did this time was totally different than previous times!

It couldn’t have happened at a worse time. Life can just slap you upside the head sometimes! This hack was one more slap.

I called in the professionals.

I spent hours…about 20 hours… working on it before I made that expensive call. Then, I let them do what needed to be done. Their ability exceeded mine. Their tools are better than mine. I called them and now they assure me all is well!

There are some things we cannot fix!

This is really important…Undoubtedly, the hackers found a vulnerable place and repeatedly exploited that place. The professionals closed that door and put up a firewall.

Sometimes even though we love God…

even though we are still praying and reading our Bible,

there is a root of;

• bitterness
• unforgiveness
• rejection

and an open door of;

• anger
• greed
• pride

The warning in Scripture is clear; ” and do not give the devil a foothold.” Ephesians 4:27 NIV

But, if and when you realize you have been hacked by the enemy of your soul…

Call in the professional! Take it to God.

Here are some questions to ask…the why question never gets me anywhere so I needed better questions.

Father, you are the expert. You made me. You have a plan for my life. But, I have a problem…

1. How do you want me to handle this?
2. What do I need to do different?
3. What do you want me to learn from this?
4. Father, I ask you to heal the emotional pain this event caused me.

 

But, another reason this time was different, I didn’t allow my Resolve to Dissolve.

I had a clear purpose…

I want to steward my time, money and talent in a way that honors God. There are people that have more talent and more money than me, but I am only responsible for what God has given me.

I fed… strategically fed my spirit!

In my mornings with God, I meditated on the promises of God.

Wayne and I prayed Scriptures and promises from God together. (Verses that I have compiled as a prayer list. You do have a prayer list, don’t you? We need to chat about this sometime soon.)

I stumbled onto a book… and sought wisdom

I don’t believe for one minute I stumbled onto anything. It was a God thing! Thank you Jesus, for helping me to see that book at the exact minute I needed it the most.

In the middle of my feelings of being totally overwhelmed…in the middle of wanting to scream…I pulled myself away and picked up a pretty, little decorative book that sits beside my bed as part of my decor. Maybe I had planned to read it at some point, but I can only thank God and Mark Rutland (the prolific writer who has blessed me so many times) that I picked it up that night and began to read. And God began to heal my frustration…maybe heal it isn’t the right term…dissolve it… might be better. I realized after all God has done for me…I have to give Him my best. Where ever…what ever that might be.

I called a supportive…non judgmental friend and I sought counsel.

That is so hard for me. But God never intended us to do life alone. We need each other. You can’t share everything with everyone, but you need someone you can trust.

And then God had a loving friend call me to remind me they call our names (mine and Wayne’s) in prayer everyday!

So, I’m almost through this hack…I still have some broken links to repair and some template issues to fix, but I’m almost done. God is so faithful!

So, how can I pray for you? If you want to comment or just say please pray, I”ll call you by name in prayer.

Father, I pray for my reader. Father, bring hope and peace to my friend. If they’ve been hacked by life, reveal your presence, reveal your purpose. Let them know you like never before. Let them experience your truth and love in powerful ways. Thank you, Father. Amen.