You 2.0: Why We Refuse to Update

What is the oldest piece of technology in your home that you still use? Is it an older television set, oven, or maybe a computer. Why do you still use it and why haven’t you updated it yet. In our home I couldn’t think of anything there that was really old. We usually update to the most recent technology and are pretty quick to adapt to it. However I think at some point in our lives we just kind of give up on changing things.

Several years back while serving at one of my former churches I went to visit a church member who wanted help with connecting to our church’s online worship service. She had not been able to attend worship in-person for quite some time because of her age and wanted to experience worship with us somehow. Before my visit I asked what sort of technology she had at home and I figured out pretty quickly that I would have to visit in-person in order to see what I could do to help. When I arrived at this sweet older lady’s home it was like I went back in time. The entire home looked like someone had pressed pause in the 1980’s. Very quickly I discovered that there was very little I could do to help without her upgrading the technology in her home. From the large tube television to the floppy drive computer, everything needed to be updated.

After spending a bit of time that afternoon with her and talking with her son on the phone, we came up with a plan to purchase a new tv and connect it to the internet. We also realized that there would need to be some time spent teaching her how to use all this new stuff. It did not go easy at first. The first couple of weeks we discovered that she wasn’t even trying to use it. When I returned to her home to follow up with her as to why she gave up trying to use it, she said, “I am too uncomfortable with it all.” Eventually we did get her to a point where she could easily logon for worship services, but it took some time.

That encounter is a great example of why we refuse to update or change things in our lives. We grow so comfortable with the way we have lived we give up on any desire to change. This is true for almost any change we try to implement in our lives.

The Christian life necessitates change. The person we are when we first discover Christ in our lives is incompatible with the person Christ wants us to become. Comfort is one of the biggest obstacles to that change. This Sunday join us for worship at 8:30 and 10:45 AM, as we learn about why we refuse to update and what we can do to change that.

In God’s grip,

Pastor Chuck Church