christianity in the On Demand era - part 2

When IBM first launched into their OnDemand marketing, the focus was on the realization that the ever increasing speed of e-business and e-commerce required a fundamental shift in the way we needed to run a business. The latest batch of commercials have focused on various implementations of this type of business model, all under the guise of the Help Desk. The basic goal of the Help Desk is to bring people and ideas together to solve problems that cannot be solved by one person alone. Sounds like a pretty good concept, right?

In one scenario we are introduced to grid computing and how when your personal computer is not in use, the spare computing power can be utilized by researchers working on anything from medical cures to environmental concerns. While a seemingly simple idea, the concept has far greater reaching impact. Taking the computing aspects out of the picture, the basic context boils down to donating your excess to help the greater good. You are not sacrificing your livelihood, and you are not being judged about your decision to purchase a $4000 machine for checking email or tracking finances. You are using what you have and what you can achieve with your means to make a combined personal impact on a global scale. A non-computing example would not be that far removed from what many of us might practice in the US on Arbor Day: planting trees. While some of us may only plant a couple of saplings in our own yard or neighborhood, there are also those who band together to refurbish empty lots or public parks with new trees and shrubs. The effect is the same, we are tending to God's creation and ensuring that its beauty will not be lost - though I believe that this type of environmental awareness should reach farther into the hearts of Christians and apply to a broader range of issues (i.e. animal displacement caused by urban creep).

Virtual learning is brought up in another scenario as a means to ensure education is available to all who seek it. Essentially, this implies that we can use new technology to reach new places. As many of us have, I think that it is our duty as Christians to be early-adopters or beta-testers, people who get in on the ground floor of new technology. We need to know what is happening in our world and understand the impact new technology will have on cultures, societies, global communications, and our civilization as a whole. Being a technical guy, I see the Internet and the wide range of virtual technologies as a largely untapped tool when it comes to Christianity. Sure there a few forums, blogs, online portals, and news sites, but a still more focused form of online outreach must exist. People search the Internet for all sorts of things, including Christianity... shouldn't they be finding more than a cut and paste of the Nicene Creed and a corporate-like mission statement? I am somewhat overly critical here, because there are a few places that I have visited online that do have the right idea (Emergent Cohorts for one, is using the Internet to raise awareness of local Christian learning/discussion groups). However, for the most part navigating the Internet in a quest for spiritual guidance or other faith building resources is a long, tedious, and scattered process (I know).

One of my favorite commercials features a guy who rushes the Help Desk with plans for a hydrogen-fueled car who's only emission is clean water, only its just an idea and he needs help implementing it. Here the Help Desk is helping ideas become reality, as the guy turns around and finds the car built after the agent rattles off a list of resources that will be needed. Sometimes I think we get caught up in the idea that we can do anything on our own as long as we apply ourselves. I am guilty of that myself, but there are times when I recognize I can't do it on my own and I think that should always be kept in the back of our minds. Sometimes new ideas come from the most unlikely places, which usually leads to an initial dismissal by those who would be able to implement it (partly due to pride). As a community of faith, I think it is our duty to always be open to new ideas. We should be ready to bring our skills into the mix to see if something is feasible, and help bring ideas into reality. In a vast over-generalization, the world has 2 kinds of people - thinkers and doers - sometimes we need to recognize and respect each other for our differences so that we can work together towards our common goals. Our world moves forward by means of new innovations, which are made possible by the collaboration of people with different backgrounds and skills... why shouldn't the church?

If something else strikes me as a particularly nice parallel between Christianity and the OnDemand philosophy, I might write a part 3. I really like the concept, it has a feel of something that would work. I truly do believe that a more flexible and innovative church can make a large impact in the world today; especially in this time when we truly do need more understanding and compassion in our global community. Want to help transform this idea into reality?