There's an App for That

I have a Bible downloaded onto my iPod and I don't see a problem with it. It saves paper, is often easier to use and is much easier to carry. It is also handy in those random moments when you think of a verse but don't have a Bible around like at the store or work. Many churches have iPod apps or podcasts you can subscribe to through iTunes. While this does not necessarily encourage fellowship in the church, I see where it can have its uses. But what happens when this "app-based" mentality that all things should be as easy as a touch and a download really reaches the core of Christianity?

Now I'm not talking about some sort of virtual church where you watch the sermon on your iPod and tweet your reactions (though I'm sure this is happening or will happen soon). I'm speaking of something far less obvious but just as harmful to our faith.

There is a popular Facebook application where you answer questions and each successive question you get right supposedly results in a grain of rice being donated to a hungry child. I'm sure there are many apps in the app store like this where you somehow donate to what is deemed "a good cause." Fundamentally, this is not much different than what many have been doing for years. Just instead of writing or mailing a check, we can link to our paypal accounts with just a touch. This saves us the hassle of having to think about what we are giving to.

That there are families starving while we complain over leftovers.

That people have no shelter while we don't like the shade of the carpet.

That children must grow up alone while we argue with our parents over curfew.

Granted, these aren't easy things to think about. Doing my internship in Santa Barbara this summer, I was confronted each day I was there with the homeless on State Street. My initial reaction was to turn away because I did not want to feel their pain. One day, a guy called me out on this while I was walking quickly by, telling me not to look at him like that. I saw him on the street again the next morning, and this time I stopped, said hello and shook his hand. I saw the face of Jesus in him and felt more intense joy and peace than I had in awhile - just from choosing to identify with pain rather than turning away.

We, as humans, long for relationship. It is what God made us for - an incredible marriage between human and divine. When we choose to look in the face of the weak and the poor and say, "I've been there too," I think we catch a glimpse of eternity. This is why giving to those in need and doing all we can for the least of these is so important in scripture. It is so much more than just helping others or some sort of social obligation - it is working towards eternity.

When we write checks and touch buttons to blindly give money away, we miss out on this. We are robbing ourselves of the community we were made for. I believe this is the reason America is such a depressed nation. We've created an app for what is meant to be one of the most personal and joyful actions we can take part in. Rather than shielding ourselves from the pain of reality, we are blocking out the joy of community - the very purpose of our being. So instead of playing that rice game on your iPhone why not walk down the street and talk to someone in need. You may discover that you are in need as well - in desperate need of relationship and community.