“I don’t need anyone to tell me. I can find out for myself” – could very well be the motto for the information age. While none will dispute the amount of knowledge now available, at least to those online, romanticism about the information age is fast wearing out.
In a recent article in Business2.0, Richard Saul Wurman writes:
“Most of us are growing apprehensive about our inability to deal with, understand, manipulate, or to comprehend the epidemic of data that increasingly dominates our lives.” (Buisness2.0, November 28, 2000)
And Alvin Toffler, the futurist guru reminds us that:
“Too much of anything is not good……I don’t think the issue is too much information. More important is decision overload. We believe that every person, or organization, can only make so many competent decisions in a given amount of time. Up until the point that we change our biology, there are some fixed limits on the speed by which we individually process information.” (Business2.0, September 26, 2000)
As a result we are increasingly dependent on those who will winnow through the huge amount of information now available, and cull out for us what is important and significant – the gatekeepers.
The information age has not brought us information independence. The sheer amount of information now available has in fact made us even more dependent on ‘gatekeepers’. As Tim Carvell puts it, “We have always needed gatekeepers – and as the Internet makes more and more information available to us, we will need them even more.” (eCompany Now, September 2000)
What an exciting time for God’s people!
With so much information now available, people are crying out for those who will help them make sense of it all.
As Christians, we know that “The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge…” Proverbs 1:7.
Christians are therefore uniquely placed to help provide a true picture of life. We are able to point the world to the right questions that need to be in place before people can begin to search for the right answers.
Indeed Christians are uniquely placed to point people to Him who is the Truth and the Way to true Life (John 14:6).
Unfortunately, more often than not, Christians are also mesmerised by the daily flood of information. We too are caught in the losing game of trying to play catch up. Perhaps this is an echo of the sin principle in all of us that believes that salvation is to be found in knowledge independent of God.
We are in danger of ignoring the increasing number of wake up calls from people realising that salvation will not be found in ever increasing amounts of information. That too has proven to be a false God.
The need of the hour is for Christians to assume the responsibility to be the gatekeepers for humanity. Because if we don’t do it, others will.
And who knows where they will point us.