Plugged in today? Everywhere we look it is not hard to notice people absorbed by screen tablets. I remember my first Nokia 8210 towards the end of High School and how liberating it was to have a device where I could text, call, or a small selection of games without the internet. As a kid, I thought it was revolutionary because of the benefits it brought like being able to call someone in a few seconds, ring if there was an emergency, or send a quick text to save time or avoid disturbing someone at the wrong time. Despite the blessings these glowing devices have brought to our lives, in society there is a growing sense of the negative impact they bring on us. The irony is this Pastoral letter has been written on a laptop. I watched a Documentary called “The Social Dilemma” that discussed the social and mental health implications of how having a mini supercomputer in your hands can impact you personally because they are designed to keep us “plugged in” as much as possible. But God wants us to be people of His Book. We can all be challenged me included, to be more diligent and deliberate about investing time in God’s Word each day. God’s Word is not only spiritually profitable for us but also prepares us for good works (2 Tim 3:16-17). The Word of God equips us for life as a fellowship and as individuals in our day-to-day activities so that we might be a blessing to each other and to the World. Paul uses the imagery of being a soldier (2 Tim 2:3-4) to give Timothy a model for how to live the Christian life in a world opposed to God and his ways. The end of the letter tells us Timothy was mentored by a legacy of faithful Christian witnesses within his own family, namely, Eunice and Lois (2 Tim 1:5). We know that God’s Word is living and active in communicating not only his ways to us but testing our thoughts and attitudes of our hearts (Heb 4:12). Why does this matter? It matters because as fallen humans we are by nature creatures of worship and following, so we must always be ready to reflect and assess how we use our time each day. Are we giving more time to our glowing devices? We must remember they will not only impact us but train us also in whatever they are promoting for better or worse. So, let’s continue plugging into God’s Word to inform and impact our minds and hearts before we start each day.
今天「連上」了嗎？無論我們走到哪裡，都不難發現人們全神貫注於平板電腦。 我還記得高中快結束時我的第一台諾基亞8210，擁有一台可以在沒有互聯網的情況下發短信、打電話或玩一些遊戲的設備是多麼自由。身為孩子，我認為它是革命性的，因為它帶來了很多好處，例如能夠在幾秒鐘內與某人通話，在出現緊急情況時撥打電話，又或發送短信以節省時間或避免在不當的時間打擾某人。儘管這些發光設備為我們的社會生活帶來了祝福，但我們也越來越意識到它們對我們帶來了負面影響。諷刺的是，這封牧聲是在手提電腦上寫的。我觀看了一部名為「社會困境」的紀錄片，其中討論了手中的迷你超級電腦如何影響您個人的社交和心理健康，因為它們的設計目的是讓我們盡可能地「連上」。但上帝希望我們成為屬於祂的書的人。 我們所有人都受到挑戰，包括我在內，每天更勤奮、更刻意地把時間投資在神的話語上。 神的話語不僅在靈性上對我們有得益，也為我們做好善行的準備（提摩太後書3:16-17）。神的話語裝備我們一生，使我們在團契和個人日常生活中，成為彼此間和對世界的祝福。保羅用士兵的形象（提摩太後書2:3-4）為提摩太樹立了一個榜樣，告訴他如何在一個反對神和他的道路的世界中過基督徒的生活。信的結尾告訴我們，提摩太受到了他自己家族中忠誠的基督徒見證人的指導，即友尼基和羅以（提摩太後書1:5）。我們知道神的話是活潑的、積極的，不僅向我們傳達祂的道路，也考驗我們內心的思想和態度（來4:12）。為什麼這很重要？這是因為作為墮落的人類，我們本質上是崇拜和跟從的生物，所以我們必須隨時準備好反思和評估我們每天如何利用我們的時間。我們是否給了發光設備更多的時間？我們必須記住，他們不僅影響著我們，還會在他們所提倡的無論好壞兩方面訓練著我們。因此，讓我們在每天開始之前「連上」神的話語，以告知和影響我們的思想和心靈。
