INFORMATION: THE MEANS TO AN END. Pts. 1-3

 “Data helps us know where to go and what do when we get there.”

 

I was watching the “Sunday Morning” program yesterday morning and this particular quotation, or something very much like it came out of the mouth of one of the individuals who sat for an interview. To be specific, Melinda Gates, wife of one of the richest men in the world, Bill Gates.

As a counselor I often substitute the word, “information” in place of that word, “data.” But I think that the two words are, to be fair, interchangeable. I have often challenged my clients that, “Information is salvation, (with an un-capitalized ‘s’)” since information saves us from a multitude of trouble in this life.

As anyone knows who has lived more than a few moments on the face of this planet, there is a ‘whole lotta’ bad, or at least unsupported information out there.

As a Christian therapist I am especially skeptical of horoscopes and fortune tellers. Why is it that people assign any credibility to the Signs of the Zodiac, and the horoscopes which flow out of that belief structure? Why is it easier for some to place their trust in the inanimate objects we call stars, rather than in the One who made them? Why would anyone waste 90 seconds of their lives to read a textual monologue (horoscope) which some aspiring part-time writer brainstormed at his dining room table, and forwarded to his local newspaper; (prior to reporting to his I.T. job at Verizon)?

And did I mention fortune tellers? Give me a break. I mean, if they were SO spiritually perceptive they would have won the lottery ten times over by now, rather than living in a “shack by the tracks” and setting up business in a shopping center storefront. (Not to mention the biblical admonition against investing trust in such a charlatan).

Pt. 2

Yes, there is a myriad of bad and unsubstantiated information out there which if we are prone to assign any validity will, in the vernacular, mess us up.

I mean, all I have to do is open up my email account in the morning. Some so-called ‘lawyer’ in Ireland has wonderful news for me. I have just won the (non-existent) Irish Sweepstakes and $500,000 U.S. Funds are waiting for me. All that is required of me is to forward my Address, Date of Birth, Social Security Number, Mother’s Maiden Name, Checking Account Number, and every address where I resided for the past 50 years.

Then there is the poor, disenfranchised young lady in Nigeria who has been cut out of her wealthy father’s will. It seems her three brothers have absconded with his life’s savings of $30,000,000 and she has been left penniless. All I have to do is come to the rescue of the ‘damsel in distress,’ (and indicate my good faith intentions) are to telegram $250.00 to the Bank of Nigeria in her name. Of course, any details related to how my involvement in the matter is relevant, and exactly how I can best speak for her are few and far between.

And then we have social media.

As I scroll my way down my Facebook homepage it is common to see these spiritual manifestos which declare, “If you are in arrears with your mortgage or car payment, type ‘Amen’ and God will open up the windows of heaven, and you will receive the exact amount of money which you need before 5:00 pm today. Bishop _______ has spoken it.” Of course, there is always a ‘however’ attached to the blessing. “If you scroll past this promise, you lack faith, (‘all bets are off’) and no financial blessing will be forthcoming.”

(My dear Bishop would you mind putting the foregoing assurance in writing, and, oh, please sign on the dotted line).

Pt. 3

As Mrs. Bill Gates has so wisely mused,

“Data helps us know where to go and what to do when we get there.”

Data, (or information) may also lead us in the wrong direction depending on the source and its credibility. There’s an old adage relating to the fruits of unrighteousness:

“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”

Well now, if you substitute the words, “Unsubstantiated Information” or “Stupid Advice” or “Illegitimate Guidance” for that first word of the adage, you may have it just about right.

By William McDonald, PhD. Excerpt from "(Mc)Donald's Daily Diary" Vol. 52. Copyright pending

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