Some Thoughts on Technology

Greetings to all!

Apparently I told Leah that if she started a blog I would help her out and write my own posts every once in a while. Well, she decided to hold me to that this week! So here goes my first attempt at blogging....

The other day in my personal finance class we had a guest speaker come and talk to us about ways to wisely handle our finances. One thing she talked about was the difference between cash, debit cards, and credit cards. One major distinction between them is that both cash and debit cards are limited by how much money you have in your possession (whether in your wallet or in your bank account), but credit cards have no such limit. Yes, you can put a limit on how much you can put on your credit card in one month, but you don’t actually have to be in possession of that money in order to spend it. Noting that this was a danger sign, but also recognizing its value, the lady said, “In and of themselves credit cards are just a piece of plastic. They’re neutral. It’s how you use them that can make them good or bad.”

Really? Are credit cards simply neutral? Consider the common pitch-line that credit card companies throw out to customers to reel them in: “Have it now. Pay for it later.” Is that a neutral statement? I would argue that it is not at all neutral – it is full of values. The most obvious one is the value of “having things now” which is translated as instant gratification. Another value imbedded in that statement is that people should have things even though they can’t afford them. Knowing that the average American household credit card debt is over $7,000 is enough to convince me that many people are affected by marketing that says “you need our product now in order to be happy” even when they can’t afford those products.

As Christians I think this is something we need to be very aware of and cautious about. I have yet to find a place in the Bible where instant gratification and consumerism are encouraged. The values that a credit card holds are values that we should be avoiding, not embracing. Now I don’t think this means that Christians should not have credit cards. I myself have one and use it quite regularly for gas and groceries. What I think is important is that we as Christians recognize the values that we welcome into our lives. When we sign up for a credit card we are inviting the values of the credit card into our wallets and purses. Of course it is possible to use the credit card responsibly, but the very nature of the credit card encourages irresponsibility. In the words of one of my professors, the credit card is something we need to “use with caution”.

Obviously this is an issue that applies to more than credit cards. Everything we use in our lives contains values. Here are a few more examples:

·                         Vehicles: we ought to be able to go wherever we want whenever we want.

·                        TV’s: we ought to have access to entertainment whenever we want.

·                        Microwaves: we ought to be able to cook our food as fast as possible.

·                        Cell phones: we ought to be able to contact whoever we want whenever we want.

I should apologize right now for wording everything so far in a negative way. I wanted to stir up a little bit of uncomfortableness at first. ;) Here are all the same technologies with a positive value.

·                         Credit cards: we ought to have a safe and convenient way to spend money wherever we are.

·                         Vehicles: we ought to have a safe and easy way of travelling to see family.

·                         TV’s: we ought to have access to relevant news, weather, and sports information.

·                         Microwaves: we ought to be able to cook our food more efficiently than in an oven.

·                         Cell phones: we ought to be able to make emergency contact wherever we are.

As you can see, every technology we use in our lives has both positive and negative values. I think it is important for us as Christians to take advantage of the positive blessings technologies can bring us, and do whatever we can to limit the impact that the negative values have on us. It is my prayer that we can glorify God through the way that we use the technologies that He has blessed us with.

 Sorry I don't have any pictures to post with my blog...I guess my life is pretty boring! I hope you all have a great week and a blessed Lord's Day tomorrow!

Until next time,

Daniel