June 9, 2009 • 11:02 pm 0
Here’s a quote from Victor LeBeau, a retail anaylst following the economic boom after WWII:
“Our enormously productive economy… demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfaction, our ego satisfaction, in consumption… We need things consumed, burned up, replaced and discarded at an ever-accelerating rate”.
Filed under: Technology
February 4, 2009 • 10:23 pm 0
I was recently having a conversation with someone in our church about modern musical tastes. When I was growing up I saved all of my money to buy exactly one tape or CD a month. I listened to that album over and over until the songs were spinning in my head at all times. I only listened to one or two genres but I was absolutely devoted to it. These days if you ask anyone who grew up in the iPod generation about their musical tastes you’ll almost invariably get the answer, “a little bit of everything.” You’ll get people who listen to country, rock, rap, pop all the way down to indie music. In many ways this is wonderful. People now have more access to diverse streams of culture and knowledge than ever before. But is there a trade-off in all of this?
The trade-off to bredth is often depth. We are a little into a bit of everything but not entirely devoted to any one thing. This leads to what I would call the “Eclectic Life.” The Eclectic Life has a lot of different interests but zero passions. Our lives are filled with a little here, a little there, some friends you see occassionally, some fads that you chase whimsically until the next great thing comes along. The life eclectic has a ten minute attention span and probably didn’t finish reading this article. The eclectic life loves to skim but never to read. It has thoughts but no real ideas.
The great danger of the life eclectic is that it make spirituality almost impossible. Genuine spirituality is about the Devoted Life. Coming to Jesus involves a singular passion. Following Jesus requires an entire life-altering commitment that the Bible calls discipleship. Ministering in our culture requires us to call for people to make choices that will lead to passions. And ain’t nothing better than a life filled with genuine worthwhile passion.
Filed under: Music, Technology
September 9, 2008 • 10:26 pm 0
I’ve just been reading a book by Thomas Friedman called, “Hot, Flat and Crowded.” He begins the book by talking about a new era that we are embarking on as a planet. We live in a world in which the scale of population growth, technological expasion and global warming has exploded. Friedman’s book is a call to arms to progressively deal with these new realities.
When you look at these dynamics from a spiritual perspective the stakes are even higher. Take for instance the idea of population growth. Today there are 6.7 billion people sharing the planet. By mid-century the poulation will swell to 9 billion. That is a 40 to 45 percent increase. There will be more people living in the middle of this century than the sum of human population for all history. Put it like this: In our lifetime the population of heaven and hell will double. The stakes for our actions have never been higher.
Most of the population growth will take place in urban areas. According to the UN this year marks the first time in human history that more people have been living in urban areas than in rural areas. By 2030 the numbers in urban areas will swell to 3.3 billion people. The future of missions is clearly urban missions both here in the United States and especially abroad.
Sometimes I wonder why God has put me on this planet as a minister at this particular pivotal time in this particular place. I feel so unworthy and incapable of such a calling. But I realize that God most works through the “foolish” and broken. And I realize that this makes me highly qualified for the call.
Filed under: City, Technology, Uncategorized
June 17, 2008 • 5:14 pm 0
I love Google something wonderful. It’s the supreme reference tool for a pastor preparing for a sermon. I can track down any quote and reference a world of knowledge. Google can find me the nearest restaurant and get me to any address. But is there a potential downside to the Age of Google?
One of the effects of the internet age is that we have a tendency to displace reading with web surfing. I used to be a voracious reader but now I find myself easily distracted. I promise I have developed a mild form of ADD. I can’t read for extended periods without needing a break. I also have a tendency to check my e-mail every fifteen minutes. Even when I’m on the web I can’t read long blogs or news entries that extend beyond a few paragraphs without skimming. You’re probably doing this now as you read this entry.
The irony of the internet is that it gives us a world of knowledge but it doesn’t make us more knowledgeable. We have a tendency to over rely on the information at our fingertips so that when we are without it we are ignorant. Because of Google we know bits of information but we don’t have a depth of knowledge. We know headlines in the news but we don’t know the underlying issues. We have facts without knowledge; smarts without wisdom. This contributes to the shallowness of our society.
What are the cures? As with most things moderation. How about an internet fast for a day or two in our week? We can maybe start with an hour or two a day. Many companies have programs that lock you out of your e-mail for one or two hours. It has helped productivity soar. But it starts with understanding and discussing the usefulness and limitations of our new Google age.
Filed under: Technology
