Tag: adapting

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” —Romans 12:2

We recently had to do a complicated update on our home’s technology system. The company thought it would take a day. They showed up Friday morning, spent the day, and let’s just say our technology was a hot mess when they left at seven that evening. It was an unpleasant weekend as a result.

Our televisions didn’t work properly, we couldn’t stream our favorite shows, and I couldn’t change the channels, the source, or the sound with my remote. We had to use the TV’s audio instead of our surround sound. 

Are you feeling sorry for us yet? If yes, thank you. Then again, the whole weekend taught me that I’ve become incredibly spoiled with all the benefits of technology and incredibly impatient with all the flaws that inevitably come with complicated systems. 

I wanted the young men who were here guessing to pick up their cell phones and ask for help. They finally did check, but it was too late in the day on Friday to do anything about it. That was Friday, and this is Monday morning. Those same young men just arrived, and I’m hopeful they will have it figured out today. My attitude, interestingly, is so much better now than it was on Friday evening. I’m just grateful I held my feelings inside so that I didn’t have to apologize to them this morning for anything I said on Friday. 

I’m writing about it this morning because I did a lot of thinking this weekend. (I didn’t have television to distract me!) I often thought about how our entire culture has become increasingly dependent on our conveniences. We have high expectations, and it has become easy to feel angry, troubled, short-fused, and even wronged when our conveniences are taken away! 

I tend to value things like my technology as necessities, and there isn’t much biblical advice on computers, large-screen televisions, surround sound, and various streaming services. You have probably heard someone say, “This is a first-world problem.” How have the conveniences of our first-world culture robbed us of the first-century Christian character revealed in Scripture? How do we work hard not to develop a character that depends on convenience?

Biblical truth transcends culture

Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians while he was under house arrest in Rome. He was writing to the first-century Christians in Colossae, whose faith had cost them almost everything. They had been alienated from their culture, their families, and their friends. Many had lost their jobs as well. The Romans were beginning to place significant pressure on Christians, and compromised theology was becoming a reasonable solution for many in the church. Many believed that the compromise with the culture was a safer, more effective way for the church to survive. Paul wrote to correct that way of thinking. He wanted them to know that pure truth, pure faith, and pure living were the only options for God’s children and the only truth to teach.

Paul taught the Colossians, “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:12–17).

My point: Friday evening when those nice young men left our home for the weekend, leaving our technology a hot mess, my character was not the character Paul insisted upon. Later, I had to wonder, when did all my conveniences begin to feel like important necessities?

Conveniences can rob us of our character and more

I’m old enough to remember the days when we had three channels on our TV. If we wanted a different station, one of us had to walk over to the television set and turn the channel. The entire family had to negotiate and then watch the same program because we only had one set in our home. 

If we didn’t want to watch what the rest of the family chose, we had the options of picking up a book and reading, listening to our radio or record player, playing a game, putting together a puzzle, or, if it wasn’t too late in the day, playing with the kids in the neighborhood.

We had one phone we had to share. We were excited to eventually purchase a VCR player, even though it meant driving to a Blockbuster store to choose a movie from the shelf. We had a McDonald’s, a Taco Bell, and a Burger King, but Jack-in-the-Box was the only fast food with a drive-through!

You probably know where I’m going with this. Our conveniences today are so GREAT!! We can download a movie we want to watch at any time. We have more than one TV, we each have a phone, a computer, a tablet, and literally thousands of convenient options for our entertainment. 

People today don’t read as many novels. Most of us don’t cook as often because we can drive through or have whatever we want delivered, whenever we want to eat it. We feel inconvenienced if there are long lines or the delivery runs late. 

Have we exchanged our values for something more convenient, but less worthy?

What can we do about it?

I have no idea what we can or should do with all these changes. But join me in thinking about possible solutions. Our culture of convenience is creating some cultural weaknesses. I read a really great novel this weekend. Jim and I had some great conversations. (Most of those began with a complaint about our televisions, however!) We had time with our family, time with one another, and time to enjoy the quiet. We spent our time differently this weekend, but in many ways, it had greater value.

They are going to fix our technology, and we will be SO GLAD to have it all working again. Jim and I admit we are spoiled people who love our conveniences. I just want to be careful not to value my first-world conveniences more than I value God’s eternal blessings. 

Faith and a Christian character are inconvenient at times. In fact, exercising our faith and putting it into practice is almost always an interruption and inconvenience to our own choices. That’s why Paul told the Colossians, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ” (Colossians 3:23–24).

We are a spoiled generation of Christians. My grandparents once thought of owning a phone or a car as a luxury. Eventually, those things became conveniences and are now considered to be necessities. It was good to be reminded this weekend that conveniences shouldn’t feel like necessities. That perspective can protect our character, our culture, and our companions. 

Dear Lord, focus our hearts on things eternal. We know that your inheritance will matter forever.