A Horse or a Hard Drive?

Imagine, if you will, that you were Joseph Smith or one of his brothers in Christ. You have received revelations from the Lord and you need to share them with other saints. You go to the barn, saddle your horse, or hitch up the buggy, and set off. Your wife has packed a bit of food, you've donned your warmest coat and set off through the forest. No doubt the road, if there was one, was crude. There were few creature comforts to ease the burden of lengthy travel. You were no doubt warmed by the Holy Spirit, and you hastened to spread your newly revealed message. Under these conditions, haste meant several days of lost time. This was a common dilemma faced by our ancestors in the faith. Is it any wonder that they baptized scores of people at a sitting? They didn’t have the luxury of long winded, agonizing decision processes. They dealt in the here and now. When the spirit called, you obeyed.

Now, fast forward to today. You have a significant dream, a fresh testimony, an inspired thought to improve the fellowship and you need to share it immediately with others. You go to your home office, study, den, whatever, and pick up the phone or sit down at your computer. You are suddenly in contact with the entire world if you so choose. Aside from the usual complaints about faulty internet service, balky computers, and fuzzy phone connections you have the means of instant communication. You can “go tell it on the mountain” without any appreciable strain. You are only limited by the length of your email addressees list or your phone log.

One of the biggest challenges we face now is to insure communication with others in our circle of faith occurs at an appropriate moment in the recipient’s time zone. If Ev in Maine has a thought at dawn to share with Hartley in Nevada, his 3 am call may not be appreciated. So he fires off an email, which will be received as soon as Hartley fires up his computer. These intercontinental transactions would have been impossible for the Saints of 1830. The country didn’t even have regulated time until the advent of the railroads.

Given our current conveniences, what would be our excuse for not spreading the gospel? What would be our excuse for not being aware of the entire goings on within the church? Are we reluctant to face the terrors of the night trudging through the woods? Do we wish to avoid the discomfort of long range foot travel suffering cold, fatigue, hunger and fear of encountering some real or imagined predator? Sorry! There is no justifiable excuse available. These modern devices are gifts from God to be used to spread His message. Through His good offices, men have been inspired to design better and better means for communication. It is impossible to believe that the computer, on which this is being entered, is simply an extension of the “big bang.” Like many of our gifts, it is useless without prayerful application.

In our corner of Zion, we are surrounded by Amish neighbors. One could not possibly ask for better people to have so close. They are, though, a peculiar people, and disdain being connected to the world. Without motorized vehicles, electricity, or telephones they intentionally are out of touch. Being isolated from “the world,” they feel better able to quietly pursue their faith and not be distracted. There is no intention here to either condemn or endorse those feelings. It is just one group’s response to modern technology. They do, rightly, recognize that those things which can work so well to work for good may also be used to promulgate the workings of Satan. This applies to most things which surround us in daily life. The ability to exercise moderation, temperance and good judgment are not unknown qualities of saints. Obviously, if evil is the intent, it will probably be the outcome.

Traffic on the internet or other technology should be subject to the same prayers and supplications as other media. God will provide the discernment necessary to ferret out the truth. One need only ask. He “upbraideth not” anyone who seeks this help. Given this preparation we are then ready to exploit the huge resources available. God has supplied some marvelous tools for the dissemination of His word.

In His abiding love,

Cecil Moon