I am a computer illiterate. Not because I cannot read, but because I rarely read the manuals which come with the operating programs. (This is because the manuals are most often written by people who assume you already know all about your computer and that you don’t need the manual. For this reason, virtually no problem which arises can be looked up in the index because you don’t know the technical name by which the problem is called. Even then…oh well.)<\/p>\n
Furthermore, I hate my computer, but could not now live without it. Although I readily acknowledge that my work putting this journal together is made immeasurably easier because I have a computer, I will not easily acknowledge that the “brains” behind it is in the Pentium chip but in the mind of the man doing the actual work of laying it out. I tell you these things, not because I am proud, but to help you understand why I hesitated so long in getting onto the Internet. Even now, had it not been for the input of a dear friend, I would not have gotten “on line.” Now that I am using my modem, I must confess that there are some advantages to it.<\/p>\n
Being on one of the “Lists” managed by brethren gives me an opportunity to share quickly in studies that saints many miles away are conducting. While I happily read the “posts” made by others, I have not yet contributed any, nor do I plan to do so in the near future. (I am told that Sentry may be put on the Internet someday. While this may cut down on the number of subscribers, I will let you know if this comes to fruition.)<\/p>\n
However, there is a downside to the Internet which I think needs to be considered. Let me share a few thoughts with you at this time.<\/p>\n
The first thing I generally do each day is plug into the electronic mailbox to see what has been posted. Much of it, and sometimes nearly all of it, is a waste of time. Nevertheless, I have to “call up” the post before I can make that judgment. It would be much better if some “posts” were simply not made at all.<\/p>\n
However, what to some may be a waste of time may be to others quite useful. In fact, some ‘time wasters” are judged so by me because I long ago settled the question being discussed, but others have not. To the young preacher, the question of the “bread” for the Lord’s supper may be an issue. For me, no.<\/p>\n
While I do not seek to be judgmental, much time seemed to be wasted in an exchange concerning the color of the grape juice served at the Lord’s table. Where in scripture is there even a hint that such needs to be resolved? At least there is a reason to raise the question concerning unleavened bread, although the issue cannot be resolved with any appeal to specific scripture. But the color of the “cup”? I was amazed.<\/p>\n
Another study (?) ran on for days concerning the propriety of “gimmicks” in the preaching of the gospel.<\/p>\n
Why, the most superficial study of God’s word shows that God used “gimmicks” continually in His teaching. (Gimmicks are little more than visual aids.) The bottom line appeared to be this: certain preachers who seem to know little about how to communicate the gospel were concerned about those who do. This “study” could have stayed off the Internet.<\/p>\n
I would be the last to ask the “owners” of the lists to exercise editorial control of the content. However, it is because of this benefit that some things go “online” that would be better off sifted out. Now, this is really no problem if the brethren recognize that the services are for the sake of free-form study and that one may say something “off the record” that he would be hesitant to make public. This, however, may be a thing of the past because of the unscrupulous actions of some who feel that if it is on the Internet, it is in the “public domain.” That is a shame. In any case, I will continue to tune in and hope that more able students will also.<\/p>\n
As speech served no better purpose for Elihu than belching, so through speaking some seem to be “refreshed” (Job 32:19-20). There are times when it is the point of wisdom to refrain from words and accept the instruction of others (Job 6:24). Thus, some would be wise to refrain from “posting” and leave the exchanges up to others. I may be one of those.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Floyd Chappelear via\u00a0Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 I am a computer illiterate. Not because I cannot read, but because I rarely read the manuals which come with the operating programs. (This is because the manuals are most often written by people who assume you already know all about your computer and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[975],"class_list":["post-96870","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-internet"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13336,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/can-you-make-some-recommendations-for-a-computer-for-a-14-year-old\/","url_meta":{"origin":96870,"position":0},"title":"Can you make some recommendations for a computer for a 14-year-old?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 1, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I am hoping someone can help me sort through a lot of questions I have. First, my 14-year old son would really love to have a computer in his own room for Christmas.\u00a0 We are in need of a new computer anyway and since this is something he has\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":13252,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/one-of-my-kids-in-my-youth-group-is-into-porn-but-i-dont-know-what-to-do\/","url_meta":{"origin":96870,"position":1},"title":"One of my kids in my youth group is into porn, but I don’t know what to do","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 9, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Oh man. I had one of my kids in the youth group I run move his computer out of his room because of porn issues, but he's looking at porn again. He is leading a small group within the youth group. But he's off and on with porn. The\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16357,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-found-out-my-12-year-old-son-is-looking-at-pornography-how-do-i-handle-it\/","url_meta":{"origin":96870,"position":2},"title":"I found out my 12-year-old son is looking at pornography. How do I handle it?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 12, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: My son is 12 and is at present in the eighth grade. I have got ample evidence that he is visiting some pornography sites secretly. His friends in the school told him about these dirty web sites and how to find them. How I should handle this issue? We\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Adolescence"","block_context":{"text":"Adolescence","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/parenting\/adolescence\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":24794,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-if-the-used-software-i-bought-doesnt-allow-for-resale-what-should-i-do\/","url_meta":{"origin":96870,"position":3},"title":"What if the used software I bought doesn’t allow for resale? What should I do?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 20, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hi. This may seem like an odd question. In the past, I have bought used computer games, sold computer games, and installed computer games on my computer. My brother bought and games that were my stepdad's. According to the terms of agreement in many computer software, you do not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":50974,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-i-confront-my-dad-about-his-viewing-pornography\/","url_meta":{"origin":96870,"position":4},"title":"How do I confront my dad about his viewing pornography?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 18, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello, Thank you for taking the time to read this question. I have read your replies to others in the past and appreciate the biblically based advice you give. My father is a Christian man, married to my mom for over 30 years. Unfortunately, a few years ago, I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":18542,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/ive-fallen-back-into-pornography-how-can-i-be-confident-that-when-i-repent-ill-still-go-to-heaven\/","url_meta":{"origin":96870,"position":5},"title":"I’ve fallen back into pornography, how can I be confident that when I repent I’ll still go to heaven?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 29, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hi. I was once a member of the Lord's church. I say \"was\" because since getting baptized last year, I was so dedicated and love the Lord, but it was so soon after that I got trapped and went back to my wallowing in sin! i.e. pornography and masturbation.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96870","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=96870"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96870\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=96870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=96870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=96870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}