MANAGING TECHNOLOGY ’ S BURDENS
Human beings have always had technology . Ever since God told Adam and Eve to rule over His world , we ’ ve been making and using tools . But over the past three decades , the rate and scale of technological advancement have exploded — in ways that have forced all of us to change how we live . These changes have , without a doubt , made our lives better . Our ability to communicate with others and to educate the next generation has been greatly enhanced .
Examining Recommendations from John Dyer ’ s Book “ From the Garden to the City ”
By Dr . Bryan Smith
But the changes have put significant burdens on us too . This is largely due to the fact that whatever technology amplifies , it also numbs . A computer amplifies a student ’ s ability to perform complex mathematical calculations . But if he isn ’ t careful , he will lose his ability to do simple arithmetic . Social media amplifies our ability to share our lives with people thousands of miles away . But if we ’ re not careful , it can keep us from being authentic with the people we see every day .
John Dyer ’ s From the Garden to the City is the best book I have read on a Christian view of technology . He does an excellent job showing how technology is both a blessing and a burden . Near the end of the book , Dyer gives several recommendations for how believers can maximize technology ’ s blessings while managing its burdens . The following is a summary of some of his recommendations . 1
VALUATION Dyer ’ s first recommendation is that we take time to evaluate the technologies we use regularly , a process he calls valuation . Technologies have values embedded in them , and these values lead to certain tendencies . To be the masters of our tools , we need to discern these values and tendencies . We then need to ask how these support or hinder biblical values .
Dyer , for example , encourages Christians to evaluate the phone . Phones “ value ” communication from a distance , according to Dyer . They are useless if we want to speak to someone who is physically present . So , as long as we have our phones in our hands , we feel the pull of connecting with those who are not present . The New Testament , however , values faceto-face connections . God didn ’ t send
44 THE RENEWANATION REVIEW