Technology and Trust

At our last New A.C.T. meeting I heard two crucial resources named as absolutely essential for building a vibrant new conference: distance-shrinking technology and community-building trust.

Technology: our new conference and area will stretch across Upper New York from east to west and north to south. We’ve learned from the New A.C.T. process that even when we agree to meet somewhere in the middle of the state, some of us have to drive three or more hours to get there. The cost in time and money is significant. There will be times when this sort of expenditure will be worth it. The range of benefits provided by a face-to-face meeting is significant. No single “technological solution” can reproduce this. But technology can help us bridge the distance when the need for face-to-face isn’t as crucial as need to keep costs down. Conference calls, video conferencing, online meeting software and a host of other strategies can (and must) help us gather together virtually and make real-world decisions.

But in order to take full advantage of such technology, we’ll need an abundance of a second resource: trust.

Trust: our new conference brings together thousands of people who’ve had little opportunity to get to know each other. Yet come July 1, 2010 we’ll need to count on one another to care for our soul and the soul of this new conference. The combination of unfamiliar relationships and intimate need will make trust a challenge. Can I put my soul in your hands? Will you put yours in mine? Can we accomplish anything if we don’t take this risk?

Here’s where technology and trust impact one another. Connecting “virtually” with one another via technology will require a certain level of trust. An example: conference calls work best if you have no more than eight people on the line. More than eight voices turn speech in to babble. Which means you and I may need to bow out of a particular decision so we don’t overload the line. Can we trust the eight folks on the line will get it right without us? Even if several of them are people almost unknown to us?

Here’s another thing about technology and trust: unlike technology, trust can’t be purchased and installed. It’s organic, growing like a garden or a stand of trees. It needs the proper environment and requires the right nutrients. It takes time. It demands we take risks.

One of the blessings I’ve had during the 4 ½ years I’ve been involved in developing our new conference is the opportunity to work with a variety of people across the region. My trust has grown as I’ve experienced the commitment and the giftedness of my sisters and brothers outside my normal circle of trust. Indeed, it’s been the desire to “draw this circle wider” that’s been the main reason I’ve been so excited about our new conference. I’m looking forward to sharing ministry with some awesome people from the four corners of this new conference, most of whom I’ve never met, but who’s souls have that same “God-shaped” hole as mine and who share that same high calling to “live the gospel of Jesus Christ and be God’s love to our neighbors in all places.”