#6 - Get Ready!

DO or DIE! Your quad engine is giving everything it’s got, as you blast up the take off ramp toward a new state Quad-Jump Record. With your heart pumping as hard as the engine is, your front wheels leave the ramp when your mind flashes you the question, “Did I tighten my steering bolts last night like I talked about doing?The above may not seem like a good example for the importance of keyboard preparation, but it is, in more ways than one.

Someone once said, “The most important part of computing is what is done before you touch the keyboard.” He was referring to preparation. A crucial part of that preparation is called, Computer Grace.

Planning and preparation are actually a little different but cause deadly results when neglected.

Table grace has become an important prelude to our meals. It is a systematic reminder to us and the rest of our family of our gratitude for God’s provision. We practice table grace because Jesus Christ did. He taught His followers this crucial beginning to every meal. Take a moment and review the reasons why you practice table grace.

Now. For the very same reasons, and more, we MUST practice Computer Grace. Scripture makes it very clear that technology comes from God and we are to use it to honor Him as we carry out the Great Commission. (John 1:3) And then in 1^st Tim 3:16, 17 we see our operating manual on how to do this is scripture itself.

Our computer grace prayer to God would include:

• Praise to Him for His Goodness and Who He is.
• Thanks to Him for His gifts of technology and talents to use it.
• His leadership in us not wasting our keyboard time and His provisions.
• To tithe part of our keyboard time to evangelism and our local church.
• Focus and determination to see the project through.
• His blessing on the results of our work.

Along with Computer Grace preparation, your computer will never work better than when you keep a Keyboard Bible open next to the keyboard. What follows is a description of the second half of this great Dream Team.

Crucial Equipment for Invading Computer Land

Even though your computer may have installed an electronic Bible including many powerful search features, a keyboard Bible is still required for security and research. This keyboard Bible is just like your favorite Bible with all its paper pages of God’s great promises. It is always open and always within inches of your computer keyboard.

1. The nearby Bible is a reminder that God’s Word is chock full of principles for efficient computing. It stimulates creative thinking and planning in ways only its Author can.
2. It is a sentinel or supervisor to guard against computing sessions that are wasteful, lustful, or dishonoring to God in several other ways. Note: Remember the builders of the walls in Nehemiah 4? They worked with their sword by their side. You should too. Yours is the sword of God’s Word.
3. It is a reminder at the end of your project to ask the Creator of computing to use and bless your efforts. And certainly to reminds you to give Him the glory in your computing. end

#7 - Get Real! - A

Why the Bible is the supreme computer ‘How-To” manual.

( tie in trivia and principles to keep it all savory.)

#1 - Cost / Accessibility

1. Cheap doesn’t describe them. With the powerful study add-ons of today’s digital Bibles, you could rightly say they’re cheaper than FREE!
2. You are expected to share its verses with others.
3. 

   Most translations of any book
   1. 6 ½ Billion people in the world
   2. 6912 languages spoken in the in the world today (2007)
   3. 438 have whole Bible 1168 have just the new testament
   4. www.wycliffe.org
      
      
4. But the big scarcity of scripture that we CAN do something about is in our neighborhoods and cities. There are so many people that feel they can’t understand scripture,
   or that it’s for preachers about long-ago generations and far-away lands.
5. We (and church leaders) must develop a hunger; an appetizer, inducement, a carrot for scripture with a promise of satisfaction.
6. Consider also those with health reasons, who have a hunger for hearing the word, but need someone like you to share it with them.

List below some ideas or ways to be able to share God’s rich written promises with others.

Be creative. Think outside the box.

Where could you find neat ways to spread the word?

End of lesson

#7 - Get Real! - B

Why the Bible is the supreme computer ‘How-To” manual.

#2 – Content

Delivery

1. It teaches principles and applications in everyday terms and settings rather than just button-function lessons that make using much easier/faster.

Range

2. The uses for specific tech cover a broader range of life’s needs… medical, dietary, astronomy, spiritual, judicial, census, categorizing, hierarchy… with more supportive forums, dictionaries, and commentaries than any other publication.

Warnings and Dedication

3. The Bible addresses the ‘before’, ‘during’, and ‘after’ of computing sessions. Many of them could be considered warnings to think of your computer keyboarding as having great potential for very serious danger to mind and body, right around each corner. The Bible, God’s Computing Manual teaches us by principle and examples of efforts and energies not put in God’s leadership from the very first. The disastrous results of computer use directed only by computing manuals composed by man. Heaven’s computer manual strongly recommends it be fed upon DAILY; not just when a computing difficulty arises.

Tools Required

4. It’s directions don’t always require a working system nearby.
   List some reasons why this is a great feature of the Bible as being God’s Computing Manual.

Examples of Principles

    5.  How many of these four principles do you suppose would be helpful in your    

         computing?

      A. Preparation and persona

      B. Database and Leftovers

      C. Searching and Logic

      D. Grouping and storing files

We'll be looking at those computing principles in coming segments.

#7 - Get Real! - C

Why is the Bible the supreme computer ‘How-To” manual?

Let’s use a short story to help make this point.

#C - Credibility

Look What’s Missing.

“Clubhouse Special Presentation By Gramps and Marci, Saturday 9am” was what the sign on the door of the old building said. Even before 9am the crowd of kids was easily twice the size of its membership. Grady was the owner of the condemned building clubhouse. The kids affectionately called him “Gramps.”

Grady’s wife Marci came in and both silver haired folks sat at the table in front of the clubbers. Marci placed her picnic basket on the table as though it was plumb full of fresh eggs.

Gramps then told his audience some of his funny experiences he’s had as a computer programmer. Using both hands, he held up a computer “How-To” book for his favorite computer program. He showed it had over 1293 pages. He continued with, “Clubbers, I want you to look in the back of my programming book here. The authors of the book couldn’t get all the explanations and pictures in the book so they had to include this CD. If the CD became damaged or missing, I’d be in trouble.” He then nodded to his wife Marci.

With all the gentleness used for moving fresh eggs, Marci opened the basket and covers inside. She slowly lifted out the oldest looking Bible you’ve ever seen. The cover had come loose some years before and the ragged pages looked like they had been through the fiercest of wars. Using both hands, Marci laid the Bible on the table and opened the back cover. Gramps and Marci made sure all the audience saw there was no CD disk in the back of that old Bible – because none was needed.

The clubbers would say, “WOW!” and “Isn’t that great?” and other kudos. Marci told the clubhouse kids that the Bible is really the greatest of computer books, if you can imagine that. It’s the greatest because it tells where computers came from and what their most important purpose is. Gramps knocked on the table to get everyone’s attention. “But that’s not even the best part!” he said as he raised his computer book still showing the CD in the back.

“Can you see here? This is a website address that I am supposed to get all the corrections for my computer book.” Then with great emphasis Marci and the children looked in the back of the Bible and didn’t find any place to send for corrections for the Bible. Can you guess why?

With great care, Marci moved her fingers over the Bible and said, “Boys and girls, God has given us this most important of books to help us learn about His love for each of us. In a way it’s just like my cookie jar to be opened and enjoyed. Some Bible verses we won’t understand right away. But we can read some every day. You could say we should feed on what we read. The shepherd boy, David, that killed the giant, said,

‘How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!’” Psalms 119:103.

“David would read some of God’s Word and then say, ‘Mmmmm boy. I sure enjoy reading God’s Word.’ The Bible tells us Who loves us just the way we are, with nothing left out and without any mistakes.

(End of story)

#7 - Get Real! - D

  #D - Supreme with no close seconds

God’s Precious Word, the Bible, has and always will be, the supreme how-to manual for all good work. That certainly includes our computing. That promise is in 2^nd Tim 3:16, 17.

The value of a fort or army post is often determined by how many soldiers and equipment are assigned to guard it or how hard an enemy tries to destroy it. We know that God’s Word continues to be attacked in little country churches, large nonspiritual colleges, and by Satan himself, for centuries.

It’s reported that Voltaire, a French author and atheist (1694 - 1778), held up a copy of the Bible in the air and smugly proclaimed, "In 100 years this book will be forgotten and eliminated...". Shortly after his death, Voltaire’s private residence became the headquarters of the Geneva Bible Society and became a major distribution hub for the very Bible he assigned to extinction.

None of man’s computer manuals contain lessons that promise life, love, peace, and purpose.

The supremacy and credentials of God’s Computer Manual, the Bible, are so much more powerful it includes two warnings in the closing four verses. Just think of it, a computer manual that pronounces plagues and devastation away from God’s provisions, for anyone that tampers with the contents.

For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. Rev 22:18,19

Other books explain the purpose of the Return key on the keyboard. But doesn’t say anything about why God has given mankind it in the first place.

So critical are its principles of life and computing, that God has given us a part of Himself, the third person of the godhead, the Holy Spirit to teach us and participate in our ‘on-the-job’ training.

Why do you think it’s so important not to add to, or take away any words of the Bible?

#8 - Get Computing! - A

The following 4 or so principles are just a few of those clearly shown in scripture. Understand them well and share them and your testimony with friends and neighbors.

Principle #1 – Our Preparation

Turn with me to Luke 14:28.

We’ll see here, a pair of powerful computing principles for “ALL good works”.

There was fellow who wanted to build a tower.

For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?

1. First principle is “counting the cost”, this preparation for our efforts. And remember this refers to building towers, using a computer, or playing a piano.
   Sure we need to check paper, printer ink, all the needed information, but, those aren’t the most important…

We see the asking of God’s blessing at the supper table – Table Grace, congressional sessions, soldiers going into battle, and even many sports events.

Computer Grace is all the more needed because of the incredible productivity of the computer for good or bad. For the same reasons our minds, hearts, and fingers must be tuned to God’s will for our moments at the keyboard.

“Dear Lord. I thank you for technology and all your good gifts to me. Help me to use this computer in a way that will honor you. I know you can guide me in being creative and at the same time guarding me against Satan’s efforts. Thank you especially for your shed blood that bought my salvation, your word I have here beside my computer, and your Holy Spirit that will guide my fingers. Amen.”

But Computer Grace is only part of the preparation thing. It must also include a Keyboard Bible. This keyboard Bible is open and within inches of our computer keyboard. 
 

• It is a reminder to begin each keyboarding session with computer grace.
• God’s Word is chock full of principles for efficient computing.
• It stimulates creative thinking and planning in ways only its Author can.
• It is a cop or supervisor to guard against computing sessions that are wasteful, lustful, or dishonoring to God in several other ways.
• It is a reminder at the end of our project to ask the Creator of computing to use and bless our efforts. 

 

POWER PRINCIPLE in this reference –

Computing is a wonderful way to prove Matthew 6:33

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Principle #2 – Our Testimony (our persona).

Look at the next verse, Luke 14:29

Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.

2. Our second principle from scripture is that people are watching us and the work we do, especially if they believe we are Christians. Some are just waiting for us to mess up so they can jeer and make fun of us. Our testimony has to be a clear clean representation of Jesus Christ. Ours might be the only one they’ll really see.

POWER PRINCIPLE in this reference –

We must MUST look to God’s Word for guidance in our computing and all we do.

We are teachers of either good or bad.

#8 - Get Computing! - B

Of the 50 or so Bible computing principles, this is one of my favorites. I love to share it with others and you will too.

Principle #3 – A special list.

.

Turn to Mark 8:19-21

1. The third principle involves the way that Jesus was quizzing His disciples as He taught them about the Pharisees. He demonstrates the structure of a database with an attitude in that teaching.

A database is simply a list with with structure. That is, the way the information in each line is ordered.

A telephone book is a printed database we are comfortable in using every day. It’s a list containing records that contain LAST NAME, FIRST NAME, ADDRESS, then PHONE NUMBER. Each line(record) has the same order. But Mark 8 shows us a database with an important twist.

When I brake the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They say unto him, Twelve. And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said, Seven. And he said unto them, How is it that ye do not understand?

Do you see the two records; the two questions Jesus asked His disciples?

5 Loaves, 5 Thou, Leftovers ? Food – Fed – Fragments.

7 Loaves, 4 Thou, Leftovers ? Food – Fed – Fragments.

The important twist is that He kept asking about the leftovers.

Computer Programmers work at being good DATA MINERS. They look at the leftover data for even more ways to make the organization more productive.

POWER PRINCIPLE in this reference

Look at leftovers – wasted resources, space, talents, and tools

Like a goldminer’s pan, there’s golden resources in the leftovers, and maybe even a lost soul.

Can you create a small database that might include some friends and newcomers and some of your activities with them?

1. _____________________ ____________________ ______________________ _________

2. _____________________ ____________________ ______________________ _________

3. _____________________ ____________________ ______________________ _________

4. _____________________ ____________________ ______________________ _________

5. _____________________ ____________________ ______________________ _________

#8 - Get Computing! - C

This blockbuster principle is a thrill to share with others, as it comes from the Bible. What makes it even juicier is that it’s a computing principle found in the OLD TESTAMENT. More than that, it involves what many believe to be boring rules for the Jews.

Searching Boolean Math Lev 11 old testament dietary rules for Jews

Many powerful principles in scripture are located in probably the most shunned part of scripture – Old Testament directives about the Israelite menu.

Our principles so far have covered Preparation, Testimony, about databases and leftovers.

Principle #4 – Searching (for food)

One of my favorite fast food places often sends me and my food to my table with the receipt that says something like this: 
++++++++++++++++++
3 Piece Fish Dinner 
Medium Soft Drink
+ Baked Potato
+ Bread Stick
– French Fries
– Hush Puppies

           ++++++++++++++++

Note: Hush Puppies are small ball-shaped spiced breading

The test question is “what was on my tray?”

You can also substitute the +’s for “and”; and the –‘s for “not”.

In the 1800’s Geo. Boole ‘invented’ written logic “so called Boolean Logic” – or so he thought.

Turn to some of that shunned scripture to find my favorite computing principle in scripture. Turn to Leviticus 11:2.

Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth. Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat.

The following VERSES give contrasting examples to further explain this important rule. Then comes what fish, birds etc are on the menu.

The following CHAPTERS teach grouping principles than technology will never approach.

We use Boolean searches at the library and on Google and other search engines..

POWER PRINCIPLE of this reference

Whether it’s lessons in parables or computing principles in shunned ‘shadow’ scripture, there is more of God’s provision that you could have imagined, in places you still need to look.

Is there a child or adult in your sight, missing a shoelace or shiney shoes? Maybe just below the surface is a heart begging God for someone like you to care… just as they are.