Virtual Spiritual Insanity

(How My Mouse Taught Me a Lesson About Sin)

by Nick Popadich

A lot of people think that God and technology just don't mix. They are wrong. Because if I had never had any troubles with my mouse, I would have never realized just how much sin could control our lives.

A Parable for Our Time

If Jesus were around today, he wouldn't be talking about sheep and mustard seeds. He would be talking about modems, cell phones, and DVDs. Jesus talked about what mattered most to people. He talked about what people could relate to.

Well today, a common bond between many across the world is the computer. The computer has entered our lives and impacted them in many ways. From cash registers, to grade reports, to ATMs -- computers are now necessary for life to continue the way it is.

I could not imagine a day without using a computer. Many of us use computers all day at work and then turn around and use them at home for research or entertainment. The possibilities are endless. With a computer, we are in the driver's seat. But what happens when your wheel is malfunctioning? That is: what happens when your mouse just isn't working like it should?

Mouse Trap

Gradually, my mouse was losing its effectiveness. I don't know when it started. Eventually I had to really start rolling it to make it work. My hand was doing aerobics while the arrow on the screen barely moved or moved erratically. It was time to get a new mouse -- but I didn't. I kept telling myself that the next time I went to the store I would get one, but I never remembered. Since I use the computer every day, I actually got used to the way my mouse worked. Sure, I realized that a new one would be better, but I could make the old one work just fine.

For months this continued. Then one day, another person asked to use my computer. She couldn't even check her email. "What is wrong with this mouse?" she asked. "It barely works at all."

"Oh," I said. "Here let me help you." I used the mouse with no difficulty. I had become so used to how it worked, that I had built up a skill for all the tricks necessary to make it work. It was then that I realized that this mouse was more than just a tool for using my computer. It was a tool for teaching me a lesson about sin.

Sin Trap

Sin, like the troubles with my mouse, often sneaks up on us. I don't know of anyone who says, "I want to go out and sin a lot today." Every day we have so many choices to make that we're bound to make a few poor ones.

But sometimes, sin can become a way of life. We know that our lives would be better, more pleasing to God and ourselves if we changed our ways, but we don't. We've become used to our sin. It's now just a habit.

We also can become very good at working with our sins. We rationalize and tell ourselves what we need to hear to make ourselves feel okay about our sins. We know that it would be better to just get rid of them, but hey, our lives can work just fine with them.

Our sins can become us, if we don't watch out. That was the revelation I received from seeing someone else struggle to get my mouse to work. Of course it wouldn't work! That mouse was like my comfort sins. They work for me and I understand them, but they sabotage the work of everyone else.

And in reality, they were sabotaging me, too. Sin slows us down. Sin stops us from living life to the fullest. It's not until we realize how much work it is to continually live in a state of spiritual denial that we can change. Once we wake up, we can crawl out of our sin traps and live a satisfying life.

Just Point and Click

Now I've got a new mouse and boy does it work great. I can't believe that I went so long with that old one. I had forgotten how much better a fully efficient mouse could be.

The same is true with our spiritual health. Sometimes we forget how great starting over can be. Jesus offers us a new mouse. He offers us a new mouse every day. We should never be stuck with a mouse that doesn't work.

When you know that there are things in your life that need to be changed, change them! Stop the virtual spiritual insanity! There's no time like the present to delete the bad choices that weigh us down and point and click our way to happiness.

Life Applications:

What are your comfort or common sins? Why do you continue to commit these sins?
Discover a sin that you commit regularly. Eradicate that sin.
Remember a time in your life when you received the freedom of forgiveness. Offer someone else that same gift.

Copyright 2002-2006 by Nick Popadich
All rights reserved.