Vaguely, I remember an old movie where someone finds a message in a bottle. Well, here is the modern equivalent. I wonder, if you found this: What WOULD YOU DO? Since this is obviously from someone who is a bit of a computer enthusiast, I would ask myself: Do I know anyone who might do this and why would they bother to go to all the trouble to send a message in such a complicated way? I know I wouldn’t go to all the trouble to do this, would you? I can only think of one reason why someone would do this – Because the message was so large it had to be conveyed this way. Today, jump drives like this (some people call them pen drives, flash drives or memory sticks) can hold an incredible amount of information, even to the point of being able to back up and entire computer. If this sounds far fetched, it isn’t. Last year I purchased a jump drive that has a capacity of two Terabytes and that is enough to do a backup on most any computer out there.
Point is: the world is changing. The ways we grew up communicating are changing as well. Think about it: we used to have outside public phones and manual typewriters (and they didn’t even have electricity either), mimeographs and stock market tickers. OK, I know that for some of you these are strange terms, but again, the point is – THINGS CHANGE! Just because we are used to communicating in one preferred way, doesn’t mean we will always use it.
And if you think this is just about the transition between the 20th and the 21st centuries, consider this passage from the Apostle John’s third letter….
3 John ( World English Bible )
13 I had many things to write to you, but I am unwilling to write to you with ink and pen;
14 but I hope to see you soon, and we will speak face to face. Peace be to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends by name.
Some people actually prefer to communicate using conversation; face to face. This is true, even today, for a person communicates a lot of non-verbal information having a face to face conversation.
So, the next time you open your Bible, think about how else you might study the Scriptures. Today, people also use the internet, a smart phone, a tablet or desktop or even a laptop computer.
Things may change, but God never does. No matter how you obtain it, God’s message is eternal. Even if it might be encased in something as strange as a jump drive sealed in a bottle!