Really?

I’m sure you’ve seen the Windows 7 phone commercials where various people who should be paying attention to the business (or pleasure) at hand are instead focused on their cell phones oblivious to everything else. Occasionally those nearby in utter frustration blurt out, “Really?” They hang on to these two syllables with such distain and physical punctuation to evidence their disapproval with a dramatic flair that only a mother who caught her child sneaking a cookie could muster. The problem here is that this commercial underscoring our love affair with our cell phones suggests the only way out is to have a better cell phone operating system… Widows 7. Can someone call the irony police because we have a crime scene here… REALLY!

When did we convince ourselves that cell phones were vital to our existence? When did little Johnnie and Missy start packing Ma Bell in their elementary school backpacks? And for the love of irony how in the world did our youth turn the telephone back into the telegraph with their texting craze? Really? I mean REALLY! Okay… deep breath –I know this is the information age and our cell phones have become info central with access to the web but can I get just a whisper of an amen that maybe we should slow down on the information highway and pull into a rest stop and check the map to see where we are headed? Can we talk about the spiritual consequences of the cellular craze, mobile mania and texting taciturnity? Can we take a moment and get real?

Here is what I think is real… the need to communicate. Not better, faster or heavenly cell phones paving the way for coded text language (lol) or icon emotions :) or even actual dialogue wearied by, “So, what cha doin?” But a renaissance of conversation that longs for the sharing of ideas and faith and hope. Minds meeting in the arena of possibilities sparring with their dreams and challenging each other with insights. I think that’s what Solomon had in mind when he wrote, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another (Proverbs 27:17).” Really? …yes, REALLY! -DAN