(This Week: Seizing The Moment.)
There was a time when Sam Walton was considered the gunslinger that came through town and murdered Main Street USA in cold blood. Walmart’s founder undercut mom-and-pop shops with underwear and trinkets and everything from kid's bicycle inner tubes to adult car tires.
Before long, many small businesses conceded and exchanged their proud independence in order to scratch out a living wearing the monster’s blue vests.
Around this same time, talented carpenters and plumbers wore out their shoes hustling up and down the aisles of Home Depot and Lowe’s like hotel bellboys in order to save the only-the-strong-survive contractors and the weekend DIYers a few bucks.
Now, there is a new kid and town and he’s not wearing a six-shooter. He’s nuking even the retail goliaths with a single blast. While Amazon has promised jobs, it is unlikely they will come to a Main Street or even a mall near you (unless it’s reopened under the name “Amazon” where you can save yourself the shipping).
Technology’s invasion into the marketplace resembles the sound of the bad guy’s horses’ hooves as they near the edge of town. Automation greets us with a voice that says, “I can understand complete sentences and phrases.”
Before any bemoan the good old days of personal customer service, let us look in the mirror to find the real culprit. We created the monster, not technology.
PORTAL TO HEAVEN: Technology will leave a void in the area of human touch and software alone can't offer compassion. We must ask,“How can I use technology to offer God's love and what’s my role in bringing the love of Christ into an automated world?”
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
John 1:5 (ESV)
