The Night That Changed Our Lives

There are many things and ways that the devil works his magic in our lives. I truly believe that there are 3 that have impacted us in so many ways: the internet, social media and the cellphone.

The internet, without question has given us so much knowledge at our fingertips. I still recall the days as a little school boy going to my families bookcase and grabbing an encyclopedia Britannica off the shelf. Now, we have instant access to search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, and YouTube that gives us all sorts of information. Just a simple lookup.

Today, those same aged school kids as I was and adults alike can explore pornography and many ill-conceived items on the internet.

We were also given many social media outlets from the internet: Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, etc. There are many more that I have failed to mention.

There have been many relationships, friendships, marriages that have been forged and broken over many of these platforms.

“Sometimes I think if I didn’t have Twitter, I wouldn’t be here,” Muthana said  This is a quote coming from an US citizen that fled to the middle east and joined up with a terrorist group.  She was placed in charge of social media that she helped to recruit to this killing organization.  Her life was turned upside down because of one of these avenues. Her saying “I wouldn’t be here” is her way of saying that Twitter put her in a pickle because she used this piece of social media to announce hate to another group of individuals.

There is even a TV show that has God “friending” someone much like on Facebook. Airing on the CBS television network, God Friended Me stars Brandon Michael Hall, Violett Beane, Suraj Sharma, Javicia Leslie, and Joe Morton. Set in New York City, the series revolves around a thoughtful and outspoken podcaster named Miles(Hall). Miles is an atheist and that puts him at odds with his reverend father (Morton). Miles’ life is turned upside down when he receives a friend request on social media from a user named “God”. He eventually accepts and starts digging into his new friend’s account, convinced it’s a hoax. He partners with journalist Cara Bloom (Beane) and gets additional aide from his sister Ali (Leslie) and his hacker pal Rakesh (Sharma). Miles is convinced that the “God” account is an elaborate hoax and is devoted to uncovering the truth. In the meantime, he’s playing along and, in the process, seeing his life changed forever.

God will always be our “friend” good, bad or ugly.

Let’s take a look at the Apple computer logo. Have you ever noticed the half-eaten apple as being a sign that reminds us of  Adam and Eve?

Alan Turing is seen as one of the first inventors of the computer. Although this all sounds very happy, Alan Turing had to take medicine to ‘cure’ his homosexuality. Depression hit quickly and not much later, Alan Turing had committed suicide.
Do you know how he killed himself? He poisoned himself. How? Well… when he was found, he was found with a half eaten apple. Former Apple executive Jean Louis Gassée called the logo “the symbol of lust and knowledge.” I think many of us would nod our heads with a “yes”  with that statement. Many executives acknowledged that they used the logo as a sign of respect in remembrance of Mr. Turing and his lasting legacy of technology world.

Adam and Eve worked every day taking care of the garden. They talked with God each day as well. God loved Adam and Eve, and they loved God. God had only one rule for Adam and Eve. He told them not to eat the fruit of a certain tree. One day, Eve saw the tree from which she was not supposed to eat.

The fruit was beautiful and Satan was cunning. Eve fell to the temptation and took the fruit from the forbidden tree. Finding it delicious she took it to Adam. Adam also ate from it. At the time he ate their lives, and that of all future humanity, changed. They immediately knew they had done wrong. They disobeyed God and would be punished.

The phones now encompass all of these that I shared–lost friendships, marriages, lost hours of workplace productivity. We have individuals that do not put down their phones to greet one another, to cross a sidewalk, to drive a vehicle. People have died talking and texting on their phones, videos taken and posted in mere seconds of someone committing a crime or a devilish act.  I get on my work bus and get commuted 10 blocks and while on this bus daily I look around and almost all of the passengers are on their phones-no one will look up to acknowledge one another and give a simple “hello.”

YouTube numbers shared say that 400 hours worth of video gets uploaded onto their video sharing site every minute. 1.8 billion people spend 1 billion hours per day. That equates to 85% of U.S. internet users that are on YouTube every day are between the ages of 13-17.

Imagine for a moment  the time we all contribute to this lost cause?  Yes, I have been guilty as charged in some dubious and cowardly acts using these 3 vices. I am not without sin that is for sure.  I know a famous college football coach in my state that makes  a statement with his summer campers attending his football camps. He asks “how are you spending your free time? Do you spend it wisely like helping mom and dad around the house instead of wasting it playing video games? Have you thought of going next door helping your elderly female neighbor unload groceries out of the car or do some house chores for her?”

These are some excellent ways of being a servant, a good helper towards your fellow-man and being Christlike while you are at it. “You can’t live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.” – John Wooden, famous legendary UCLA Basketball coach. 

Love more, hate less.