Thursday, August 17, 2006

This is a good time to be a Christian



This is a good time to be a Christian. I know this is contrary to popular opinion but I am convinced that it's true. Some will point to the wars and the crimes that are reported in great detail on our ever-growing media outlets but the increase in reporting doesn't necessarily correlate to an increase in these events. We have always have had crime and wars. We've just gotten better at reporting them.

In the First Century, the Roman conquest of a large part of the world brought relatively safe and speedy travel and the widespread use of a single language (Greek). We are experiencing a similar opportunity in the growth of media outlets and the their availability to a large number of people. This, combined with innovations in transportation an communication, make this an excellent time to be a Christian.

This blog is an excellent example. It has the potential to connect me to millions of people. First it was mimeographed newsletters, then it was email and cable access channels, now its blogs and podcasts. Other important ministry tools are the laptop, cellphone and, of course, the internet.

All these innovations are tools that will help Christians to exchange ideas, share messages of encouragement and hope, and provide Bibles and study material anywhere in the world. One missionary I knew was an advanced thinker. He had a computer that would help him continue his studies while in the Middle East. This was in 1988, when we had dial up speeds of 9600 and very little content. Now he could have a huge library of study material on a laptop!

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