How are You Spreading Jesus' Name?
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It’s easy to be a consumer. It’s easy to be selfish. No one’s perfect, right?
As a Christian it’s all too easy to take our Lord and Savior for granted. Finding new life in Christ has filled my heart with joy that I can share. Jesus laid down his life for me and it changed everything. It's so incredible that I get to be in relationship with the maker of the universe who loves me, forgives me, and walks with me every moment of my life. But, none the less, it's easy to find myself pursuing my own self interest before the Lord’s. We are called by the great commission to share the Lord’s name to the ends of the Earth. When’s the last time that you really took this to heart?
“And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the Gospel to the whole creation.” - Mark 16:15
Evangelizing can be uncomfortable. Being a child of Christ means that there are going to be people that dislike you (and your lifestyle). You can’t worship the Lord and also worship the world. If a question with a friend leads to awkwardness, what's the worst that could happen? Awkward moments certainly won't kill you, but sometimes it's harder to live for Christ than to deny him. God puts us in people’s lives for a reason. If breaking through possible rejection to honor Jesus leads to them finding life in Christ, that's absolutely worth it. Ultimately, we need to be Spirit-led and be open to see what Jesus sees.
What are some simple ways you can incorporate this commission into your everyday life? First off, you can pray about it. Pray that the Lord will give you the opportunity to share his good name with fellow Christians and unbelievers alike. This takes a little bit of courage, but that's simply another opportunity where the Lord will provide.
The next step you can take is to practice, practice, practice! Step out of your comfort zone and put yourself in front of people that might benefit from your insight and your witness. Whether it’s by sharing some scripture that resonated with you, some praises you have for the Lord, or anything Gospel related, don’t be afraid to share!
“And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.” - Luke 12:8-12
So invite your neighbor to church, engage with a stranger on the bus, or just be available to answer questions for troubled minds. If you find your joy and delight in the Lord, wouldn’t you want everyone to have that same opportunity?
Learning Technology
I’ve heard a number of baby-boomers mention how difficult it is to learn technology. They look at the younger generations, and seeing how familiar they are with new technology, they decide they must be wired differently. “It’s easy for kids because they’re born with the chip,” I’ve heard them say.
Being a member of this younger generation, I’ve had a lot of experience with technology; I’ve built computers, written software, and spent the past year working on the Support team at Subsplash (which means I answer lots of tech questions). I’m also aspiring to be a university physics teacher someday, so I eagerly look for better ways to explain difficult concepts, whether they’re in physics, technology, or elsewhere.
I recently read an article by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman in which he outlined what he considered to be the main difficulties students have in learning math. As I read, I noticed some interesting parallels between people I know who have difficulties with technology. He noticed three main difficulties. First, students are led to believe there is only one right way to get to an answer—any other method they employ is wrong and will result in a bad grade, even if they get the right answer. Feynman strongly argues against such formalism as it reduces the student’s ability to explore, learn, and enjoy the subject. Second, he notes that much difficulty arises in learning complex terminology when simpler and more accessible words could be used—and indeed, such simpler words are used by engineers and physicists alike. It was only the math books that used this terminology. Third, he insisted that students need to know the purpose and reason behind what they’re doing. Unless they can see the purpose behind it, or see some way in which it might be applicable, the method is irrelevant.
To parallel Dr. Feynman’s outline, I will address three main reasons why I think people have difficulty learning technology.
1. Fear of doing it the wrong way
I often notice that those who struggle with technology become paralyzed or held-back by a fear of doing something the wrong way, whereas tech-savvy people expect to make mistakes and hit dead-ends—but they know everything will be OK and they will quickly find the right way to do a particular task. To them, learning new technology is like solving a maze. They often hit dead-ends, but are successful because they are quick to recover and try other approaches. (I confess, I don’t know the answer to many questions people ask me, but I know how to find the answer fast, and I expect to hit several dead-ends along the way). As a side note, Feynman exemplified that successful theoretical physicists have a similar experience.
Of course, there are certain limitations; a cell phone is not capable of launching itself on a path to Mars and landing gingerly on the surface. Successful users of technology come to understand the limitations of their platform and play hard within the boundaries.
Pro tips:-Backup your computer and give yourself freedom to make mistakes.-Don’t be afraid of going down the wrong path. Become an explorer.-Try to understand the limitations of your platform.
2. Learning the lingo
Techno-babble is a headache for many people trying to learn technology. At some point during your journey in Rome, you must do as the Romans do. But to a large degree, it is the software designer’s responsibility to make terminology accessible. Apple has done a great job with this on their iPhone platform. And here at Subsplash, we are striving to make our lingo accessible and accurate for our users; we recently revamped our app building system with this goal in mind, and the results are rewarding for both our users and our team!
On the user’s side of things, the most helpful thing to do is learn the most important and most common words first so you can communicate with others, whether they’re people on your own team or your friendly Support Team.
Pro tips:-For common terms, a quick internet search is often the best remedy.-For more local terms, like terms we’ve created here at Subsplash, you’ll likely be provided with a decent Support Page or list of Frequently Asked Questions.-Beyond that, I strongly recommend using word-association. (I had a high-school Spanish teacher who taught us “yo soy” by having us toss a container of soy sauce to one another. Lesson learned: toss soy sauce at your own risk and bring a change of clothes.)
3. Understanding the reason and purpose of the technology
Tech and software designers have a large problem to address: they have a list of features their users want, and many possible ways of incorporating those features into the user experience. They hope to anticipate how their product’s users will think and what they'll expect, but they don’t always get it right. (I’m staring at you, Windows XP balloon tips.)
Being able to understand where developers are coming from is tremendously helpful in learning new technology. Take a cell phone for instance. The feature which lets me connect to a WiFi network is probably more important than the ability to change the background image on my phone. I can expect to find it in a more prominent place in the phone’s settings. I can also assume that any nice developer wouldn’t bury my phone’s settings more than one touch away from my phone’s main screen, so I know to look there first.
It’s always a great pleasure for us to hear from our users that our system is so intuitive—another way to say that is that they can guess where a feature should be, and they’re usually right. It can also mean that they’ve really come to understand what’s important to us, and what main features our system was built around. The more they understand our goals, the easier they will navigate our platform.
Pro-tips:-When using a piece of technology, try to discover the developer’s main goals.-Try to think about where you would put those features if you were the designer. How might you break features down into categories?-Realize that there is often more than one logical place to put a feature. The feature may not appear where you most expect it, but it will likely be where someone should expect it.
1, 2, 3 Go!
By now, we hope you're eager to get out there and explore both technology and mathematics. But if you wrestle with technology and only take one thing away, take away the mentality of becoming an explorer of technology. Wander through all the options on your phone. Right-click different things and discover what quick-access features you have at your fingertips. Learn to put a little trust in the developers and try to look for a feature where you expect it to be. Learn to explore on your own and find comfort in the fact that many tech-savvy people are fellow-explorers; they didn’t have their knowledge downloaded into a chip in their brain. They discovered how to do things by trial and error—sometimes lots of error. Don’t give up, and you’ll soon discover the joy of this gift we call technology.
What Did I Do Before...?
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Have you ever found yourself trying to remember how you used to do things before you had your latest gizmo or piece of technology? For example, 95% of the news I read is through a mobile app on my phone. Before the app, I would visit websites every day and before that?... well, I guess I never was a big fan of printed newspaper or waiting around for the 11 o’clock local news. I’m amazed at how fast technology changes the way we do simple things. I’m sure my kids will laugh when I tell them about CDs, land line phones or even laptops!
Technology changes our daily life so quickly that we can’t remember the change even occurred. I’ve had computers around since I was in middle school, so I can’t really relate to working without email or the web, but somehow people got stuff done for thousands of years before that. I’m actually quite fascinated with how people used to do stuff, from keeping foods preserved to doing international business, and how we got to the place we are today. One of the things I have appreciated most about these rapid changes is how accessible media has become. I distinctly remember when iTunes came out. It wasn’t the first place to play mp3s on your computer (or even to categorize them), but it was designed well and linked to an online store where everything was available at the click of a button, and actually legal. That not only helped change how we purchase and organize our music, but I believe it was the catalyst for Apple’s incredible 10 year run as new devices like the iPod came out that synced with the free software you were already using. Now just a few years later, we’ve entered a whole new realm of mobile access. As a sports fan, I have found myself in the past at an event where I was wishing I could check up on the score of the big game. Well today, not only can I keep up with the latest scores through an app, but I can actually watch the games live on my phone - from anywhere! Now, this may not actually be a good thing for me because I’ll always be tempted to check in on that game no matter what I’m doing, but I digress.
Another catalyst for fast changing media technology has been Netflix. Not only did they change the way we rent the latest blockbuster, but they have an entire catalog of TV shows and movies that I can watch online, through my gaming console, or on my phone. Fifteen years ago (when full house was still on the air) I could have only dreamed this would be possible. I’ll have to admit, when I first saw the iPhone, I had a hard time sleeping as my mind ran wild thinking of the possibilities, and it hasn’t disappointed. These days I would feel trapped without my iPhone. I mean, how did I ever get by with just a phone and text messaging? What did I do when I needed to find out currency exchange between the Norwegian Krone and the US Dollar while at the beach?
So, as we now have access to nearly anything at any time, how do we balance that with real life and real relationships? I mean, I’m thankful that I can simply DVR something I wanted to watch from my phone, or listen to a specific artist’s radio station from my car, but there needs to be a proper focus on real relationships and meaningful content. Technology definitely changes the way we live, but it shouldn’t change the purpose we use it for. Here at Subsplash, we have created a platform for churches to share Gospel content through media. It’s simply amazing to see how many people are watching or listening to sermons from all corners of the globe, but this also will never replace real relationships and being a part of a church community, and it’s not supposed to. It does offer us new opportunities to use technology for Kingdom purposes and lets us take advantage of the tools that we have today to make good content readily available to anyone, anywhere. We just have to remember to unplug and engage every once in a while.
Technology and the Olympics
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The way we watch the Olympics has changed drastically over the last few years. Immediate satisfaction and consumption have become so commonplace in our culture that the element of surprise is hardly attainable anymore. If you were hoping to find out the results of an Olympic event while tuning in during prime time broadcasting you’d better hold your breath. Well, hold your breath, delete your Twitter and Facebook, and avoid the internet and people altogether. The Olympics has been an event celebrated worldwide since its origin - an incredible display of patriotism, athleticism, and the perseverance of the human spirit. Advances in technology have made the Olympic games more accessible than ever. This accessibility is both incredible and a target for criticism.
This year’s Olympic broadcasting has received a considerable amount of criticism for NBC producers. Several issues involving time-delays have put the studio under fire - and their reactions to these criticisms have been less than favorable. From a US perspective, the 7-9 hour time difference has been less than ideal. This was evident almost immediately with their decision to time delay and edit the opening ceremonies. Fans were expecting to be able to see big events as they were happening, in addition to during the primetime spots, but it appears that the sentiment is not shared. Numerous outlets and individuals have mentioned their disappointment in NBC, but it’s also gone as far as reporter Guy Adams being suspended from his Twitter account for expressing unfavorable opinions about NBC (along with a head exec’s email address). Twitter has actually been a large source for concern during this 2012 Olympic season. In some of the most extreme cases athletes have been banned (or removed) from the Olympic games for sharing controversial (and usually racist) comments. We’ve also seen a smaller end of the impact of Twitter with the amount of uproar that took place after officials asked attendees to refrain from Tweeting unless urgent because it was significantly slowing the networks and even the judging of events. Let’s be real though - aren’t all tweets urgent?! (insert sarcasm here) People are used to having access to anything, anywhere, anytime, and at their fingertips. The reactions to any deviation from this seems quite excessive.
So, how are you tuning into the Olympics this year? Are you watching live streaming from an app? Trying to avoid spoilers until the event premieres on television? Reading blog after blog with countless details and recaps? Or are you one of the lucky few sitting in the stands in London? Regardless, I hope you’ve gotten a chance to witness some heartwarming stories and seen the product of this World’s best athletes extreme dedication, training, and hard work. All I know is it sure makes me proud to be an American.