It is in the intimacy with God that we develop a greater intimacy with people and it is in the silence and solitude of prayer that we indeed can touch the heart of the human suffering to which we want to minister.

-Henry Nouwen

If you are anything like me, you are on your phone way too much. I like to chalk it up to intelligent curiosity, but really it's probably just FOMO. Fear Of Missing Out. Add that to a short attention span, and you get a Hot Mess. I am constantly on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter. And being an introvert, I love that I can browse your life from my couch and sweats rather than actually engage your life through conversation and dialogue. A little creepy? I also love the news and pop culture articles, which I think is great if it's for twenty minutes in the morning but maybe not every forty-five minutes because I'm bored. I have also replaced movies and television with YouTube videos which I can watch in bed on my giant IPhone 6+. All this to say, I do not live a very unplugged life.

But several months ago, somewhere west of Colorado Springs, a group of us rented a mountain cabin over a snowy weekend. We took the time away from the city and away from cell reception to slow down, spend time with Jesus, cook meals together, talk, play games, read, and go on long meandering walks with no particular destination in mind. It was a much needed retreat; a breath of fresh air, a respite from technology, an opportunity to engage in conversation and thought with no distractions. It was beautiful.

It made me realize that I love being fully there, loving my God and my people. It was amazing! But I don't have to be in the mountains to love well. I can put my phone away right here in KC! And go for walks without worrying about how many steps I took, and make dinner with real ingredients with friends I love. I don't have to worry about tweets and likes all the time. I can look up from my phone to make eye contact with you and listen. I think times like this, more than anything, remind me that 'busy' doesn't have to be what I am. I can slow down, listen, love well, develop intimacy, and care about the human heart.

Does that count as a New Year's Resolution? Maybe just a life resolution since it's already the end of March.