“And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the Word of the LORD, and shall not find It” (Amos 8:12).
The prophet Daniel prophesied that at the end of time, many would run to and fro and knowledge would be increased. (Daniel 12:4) The prophet Amos also prophesied that men would wander from sea to sea and from the north even to the east; running to and fro seeking the Word of the Lord and shall not find It. (Amos 8:12)
Running to and fro for knowledge is not considered to be an admirable state, according to what I learned from Hebraic- minded teachers during the past two-plus decades.
As I was praying about the ministry that I oversee and mentor, I had a burden for the sheep of the congregation. My concern for all of us is presently focused on a warning about information overload. Information overload did not start with the computer age. Complexity often generated by the technology of what appears on our computer screens is not something new. When the printing press started being used in the fifteenth century, scientists as well as scholars predicted that so much information would be produced that it would be impossible to manage.
In the year 2009, the University of California, San Diego released this report:
San Diego, December 9, 2009 — U.S. households consumed approximately 3.6 zettabytes of information in 2008, according to the “How Much Information? 2009 Report on American Consumers,” released today by the University of California, San Diego. One zettabyte is 1,000,000,000 trillion bytes, and total bytes consumed last year were the equivalent of the information in thick paperback novels stacked seven feet high over the entire United States, including Alaska.
That was over 13 years ago. Today, could we even count how much information is generated in just a single day?
All this information has affected the body of Christ. When the prophet Amos said that men would run to and fro seeking the Word of the LORD, he warned us that sadly it would not be found.
Information overload affects our memory and our focus. The human brain can be overloaded just as an electric circuit can be overloaded. When an electrical circuit is overloaded, a fuse blows. When our brain is overloaded, it cannot get the rest it needs and starts malfunctioning. We may think that multi-tasking is an admirable quality, but reports have proven that our brain actually can only operate at optimum capacity if we are focused on one thing at a time. I know from experience that having to switch between tasks because of many interruptions, clouded my ability to complete the task at hand. Too much demanded of me seems to always leave me physically drained. Years ago, I learned from John Maxwell about a business consultant named Michael LeBoef. LeBoef said,“Devoting a little of yourself to everything means committing a great deal of yourself to nothing.” When we learn to focus and concentrate, we will begin to discover the true success God promises to us according to His Word.
Time is probably one of our most valued and precious commodities. We may not be able to change time, but today, right now, we can start practicing priorities. No one, especially those responsible for others, can do everything. If we try to do everything or let others put us in that position, I believe we are out of the will of God. Everyone has a specific placement and a timely assignment.
HOW TO DEAL WITH THE OVERLOAD OF INFORMATION
To effectively deal with the negative effects of overload we must TAKE BACK OUR TIME. Time is a gift to us from God and is actually sanctified. The LORD has set times for all of us. The most obvious ones are the appointed festivals. The first official festival is called the weekly “Sabbath.” The LORD has provided one entire day to cease from all work. “Sabbath” literally means to “desist from exertion.” The Sabbath is a ceasing of all work or activity in order for mankind to REST. The prophet Isaiah teaches us that if we will call the Sabbath a delight, a day set apart, a holy day, a day to honor the LORD, not doing our own thing or speaking our own words (Isa. 58:13) that He would cause us to ride upon the high places of the earth and be fed with the heritage of Jacob. (Isa. 58:14)
Let’s ask ourselves a few questions. Personally, these are the ones I ask first: Am I afraid to turn off my cellphone? Am I afraid to set time apart to rest and be refreshed? Am I afraid to sit quietly with the LORD because I might miss something that is happening, perhaps some new information? Am I relying on a constant flow of new information from someone else, rather than sitting quietly with my Bible open to hear from the LORD first hand?
According to Pew Research Center, a survey was conducted titled,“Information Overload.” 79% of the respondents found that access to much information gave them a sense of control over their lives. (https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2016/12/07/information-overload/).
My prayer for myself and those whom I mentor is that today, we all make the quality-of-life-changing decision to reject information overload. I’m praying that we start getting a good night’s sleep every night and that we take the first step towards organization in our lives. If our house, car or our desk is filled with clutter, we will easily become overwhelmed. If we can’t handle the challenge of reordering our lives, we should call for help from those who are proven to be gifted in helping their brothers and sisters reposition their stuff and their lives.
All we have is today, and today really does matter.
