There are computers in just about everything now. If it moves or winks, or cooks or cleans, it probably has a computer chip in it. So you are using a computer whether you know it or not. When I bought my first computer in 1980, it was pretty amazing to me as to what it could do. Even more amazing was all the stuff I had to learn to get it to do what I wanted it to do. I started learning code, in those days it was call Basic. That didn't last long though, too much work for a preacher. I wanted to do other things with my time rather than learning code. Greek and Hebrew was all the code I needed.

We call it the learning curve. And the learning curve in those days was pretty steep. Things have changed though. At least some things have. To use a computer for basic activities like typing or accounting today is pretty standard fare for most folks. Not too hard at all. For someone starting from scratch, it might take a little help to get started, but they can get the hang of it pretty quick. I'm thinking of older folks like me. Young folks seem to be born with a computer in their backpack. They get slapped by the doctor who makes sure they can cry and not long after that, they are on line showing pictures of themselves in the nursery. They are the first generation you might call, Purely Digital. They really don't need teaching, they seem to know just what key to type at all times. In fact, email is obsolete for many of them, it's texting on their cellphones that keeps their little digits humming.

I remember the secretary where I interned as a pastor back in 1984. She was a lovely woman who I enjoyed talking with and learning things from her about our church and the members. She was a real blessing to me as I began my ministry. One day, a computer shows up on her desk. She was expected to pick it up and make it work like it had been there for years. She didn't. She would sooner have an armed robber sitting on her desk than that blasted box with stupid things attached to it, like monitors and keyboards.

I was the only one in the office of five of us that saw how it was killing her to use it. She was not trained nor did she believe she needed to be trained in such things. The typewriter worked fine all those years and would do just fine until she retired. I sympathized with her of course. I already had spent $1500.00 on my own home computer and was running some of the same software at home that she was expected to learn in the office. So I knew what she was having to learn and I could see why she hated it. For me, it was kind of fun and I knew it would save me time as I worked on sermons and Bible studies and other correspondence.

But she thought the thing was a death trap. It wasted her time and her life. One time as she was telling me how much she hated it, tears started sliding down her cheeks. She just couldn't learn the thing and she was so frustrated that she cried uncontrollably. That's when I decided to teach her myself. And so we started a low level class, just her and me. She got it, most of it anyhow. Took her a while and I can't say she ever really liked the thing, but she got it.

I wonder today if she would have trouble getting on line and making good use of the internet or if she would simple say, the Internet is not for me. I meet people from time to time who hear about the internet and because they think it is complicated, they make up reasons why they don't even care to try it. Of course, this being America, free country and all, no one has to learn how to use a computer.  But what about pastors? Can you be a pastor and not enter the digital lifestyle? Can you be a pastor and not enter the world wide web? The answer is of course, yes. You don't have to own a computer at all. And you can do just fine.

In my next post, I'll disagree with myself and tell you why you should reconsider that notion that you do not need to be a Digital Citizen. Until then, happy typing.