CULTURAL SEISMIC SHIFT

“Who knew that a funny little word like Google would play such a big role in our culture’s seismic shift from local to global? Due in large part to the Internet and other media, people have 24/7 access to images, ideas, and information – all of which shape their lives and lead them either toward God and community or self-centeredness and isolation.” – Jonathan Morrow, Think Christianly, p.17

This could be scary as well as intimidating. We are living in a time where more and more people are having access to images, ideas, and information 24/7 – at the click of the button on the computer or a touch on the screen of the smart phone. While some are excited with the global connectivity and interactivity many have no idea the far-reaching ramifications.

Just give you one scenario: a student can get up from the dinner table and in seconds be face-to-face with all the pain, poverty, and suffering in the world on her laptop and wonder why nothing is ever said about this on a Sunday morning. Does God not care? Does Christianity have nothing to say or offer?

How about this? A curious, tech-savvy twelve-year old can find out about any religion in the world from her iPhone. She wonders to herself, “How do I know which one is true? [If any of them are true at all.] If I grew up in India, wouldn’t I have been a Hindu?”

I believe the church has to come to grips with the changing trend, come to grips with the changing world. It is not enough to be status-quo. We need the Holy Spirit, yes and absolutely true. We need the manifestation of the power of God. But we need to be equipped – the readiness to give an answer for the hope that is in us. We need to take positive steps to understand the changing culture and trend in order to be relevant.

Let me quote Jonathan Morrow again: “As society strains under the collective weight of pluralism and secularism and is deeply divided along worldview lines (not just political or socioeconomic ones), we need to think Christianly about all of life and seize the opportunities we have as Everyday Ambassadors to speak and embody the eternal kind of life Jesus offers to our culture. Tragically, many of these cultural moments pass us by unclaimed – either because we don’t notice them or haven’t adequately prepared ourselves to engage them.”

Jonathan Morrow, Think Christianly, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, US, 1978