Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Artificial Christians

I spend quite a bit of my time attempting to invent modern conveniences to simplify every day life. Wouldn't it be sweet to have a clone or at least a highly sophisticated robot Doppelganger to replace you in some of your more mundane, daily duties? I would merely like him to cover for me at the office a few times each week. Sometimes I listen to myself speaking and I don't sound all that different from the artificial intelligence featured in U-Scans at local grocery stores, ATM machines, or Haley Joel Osment (look up that last reference). It's sad really. It's about as sad as the thought I just had that my favorite Meijer cashiers, "Flock of Seagulls Hair" or "Mullet Master," could one day be replaced by machines. At least California has a governor in office prepared for such a "rise of the machines." You know, I would settle for a robot that could make my bed. Why my parents were always so insistent on such a worthless task I will never know. Perhaps my father knows more than I give him credit for. Perhaps he wants to be presentable when the robot king visits to choose slaves worthy of his glory. Truly my imagination defeats my practicality at times.
Many things that Jesus said support the idea that he requires one’s full attention and support. In a world of quick fixes and short cuts, the Christian life is often expected to be easy. Life brings many hardships regardless of whether one chooses to follow Christ or not. The difference is that a Christian faces these difficulties with armed with the hope of salvation. In Luke 9:57-62, Jesus talks about the costs of following him. One who “looks back” when doing the work of the Lord is not fit to serve him. When a follower of Christ looks ahead, he or she is able to see joy in the future. God and his church support us in all we do. We don’t need robots or artificial intelligence to be the followers God wants us to be.

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