“Stupid internet is out again,” I grumbled.
I had research to do and Bible verses to verify. I had deadlines to meet.
When spellcheck can’t help, I typically key my butchered version into the search engine and get the answer instantaneously.
I tried three spellings of a word I struggled with – nothing.
Looking at the shelf above my computer I saw a large, familiar book. I grabbed the The Merriam-Webster Dictionary
and blew the dust off in a little cloud. I was amazed at how heavy it was. Had my arms grown weaker as my internet dependence had grown stronger?
“A real dictionary,” I mused. “I feel like Wilma Flintstone.”
Within seconds I found the correct spelling.
I continued writing.
“I’ve used that word too many times.” My computer thesaurus didn’t offer me what I was looking for. Again, looking up, I spotted Rodale Synonym Finder
.
Thumbing through the yellowed pages, I realized that I’d not used the book in years!
Needing Bible verses, I instinctively tried to pull up Bible Gateway.
My dusty bookshelf held another gem – Zondervan Comparative Study Bible
. I’d forgotten the feel of a
book on my lap as I researched verses. My eyes quickly swept across the four versions displayed. I love this, I thought.
“Now, where did those old hymnals go?” I found three of them stacked in a decorative display in the living room. My books had become ornamental relics. How sad.
Leafing through the pages, I remembered the songs, before overhead screens became permanent fixtures in sanctuaries.
Somehow I accomplished more in two hours than I would normally have all morning. “How did that happen?”
I sat back and silently rehearsed my morning. I’d taken a break and made a cup of tea, organized my coupons, wrote a shopping list, ate yogurt, gone to the bathroom, dealt with a repairman, updated my Day-Timer, sang a few old songs, refilled the toilet paper in both bathrooms, and held those heavy, dusty books.
I’ll bet Wilma Flintstone was incredibly productive! She didn’t have the internet for research, but she also didn’t have the distraction of e-mail, Facebook, Twitter, countless articles, or an on-line Bible that could take her from trunk to branch tip of study as the clock ticked away.
I’d allowed my time saver to become a time waster. Maybe an internet “time out” should be scheduled in.
Join us as we read through and discuss the Bible in 2015. If you are not on Facebook and would like to participate, click here for other options including a printable reading schedule. Share this mentoring opportunity with your friends!
We’ve started a book club! In January we are reading The Nesting Place
by Myquillyn Smith. Join us in our private Facebook group to discuss.
About Kelly Stigliano
Kelly J. Stigliano has been writing and speaking for over 3 decades. She and Jerry have celebrated more than 30 wedding anniversaries together—all proof of God’s redemptive power! Kelly made bad choices for years and shares the lessons she’s learned along the way, hoping to keep others from making the same mistakes. Because no one benefits when we wear masks, she tries to stay transparent. “Everyone has skeletons in their closets, but my closets don’t have doors on them!”
- Web |
- More Posts(62)
