Yes, “googlization” is a word. If you don’t believe me Google it. Googlization refers to the rapid spread of Google, the internet king. It’s affecting my brain. And it’s affecting my Bible study. That scares me.
A couple of days ago I was reading through a particularly difficult passage of Scripture. Five or six years ago I had tiny personal library and internet access that was slower than a turtle on Nyquil*. When I came to a difficult section in Scripture I was forced to chew on it for awhile. I had to think through it and pray through it and then write something out and make my best guess. Then after about 15-20 minutes my page finally loaded and I was able to test whether or not I was a heretic.
Now, I don’t need that chew time. If I have a problem I simply Google it. And it’s making me dumberer. If I have an intellectual problem I tip my hat to Mr. Google and get an answer. Very quickly. I read through some sort of answer and then move on. The problem with this, though, is that I havean answer but I do not own that answer.
Google disseminates information. That’s great and helpful…when what you need is information. But the vast majority of what I need in personal Bible study and even sermon preparation is not information. I need the Spirit of God to enliven the Word of God and transform my heart. I needto chew on a text and sweat through it. Google gives me too quick of an out. It shortcuts my labor. And as a result it shortcuts my ownership of the truth as well as my heart.
God’s Word is central in our knowledge and understanding of Jesus Christ, His Son.
Therefore, I am going to intentionally not Google unless I chew first. I am determined to use Google primarily as a fact-checker instead of a fact-giver. I want to think on my own. I want to wrestle with passages of Scripture and not cheat by eating the fruit of somebody else’s labor. I’m convinced that the best worship comes from the labor of scrapping with a text
of Scripture instead of simply reading about some other dudes battle with that same text.Google is a poor replacement for the Holy Spirit.
—
*In case you are curious I have never actually given Nyquil to a turtle. But that doesn’t mean I never will. I’ve just never owned a turtle nor have I ever heard one sneeze.
This article was written by Mike Leake and can be found on his blog here
.
