Mind Your Business! LOL

Below I have inserted a blog from CNN's Roland Martin. Its creative and much easier than bringing a notebook. Check it out @ http://gospelfab.thefabempire.com/2009/04/21/roland-martin-no-im-not-texting-in-church/


Church for me is not a time to play around and have a swell time. I take serious my worship experience, and don’t get caught up in the hoopla of others.

In fact, one reason I prefer to sit on the front row is I don’t particularly like the distractions of folks, and with them behind me, I don’t have to see the mom smacking her kids upside the head for sleeping, the small children acting a fool, the two men or women have a conversation about what they did last night, or the other nonsense that happens in church.

So since I prefer to mind my business, I like it when folks mind theirs.

With that said, some folks have really gotten themselves worked up because they see me working my Blackberry while in church.

On Easter Sunday, I attended Emmanuel Baptist Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., at the invitation of my CNN producer. My wife and I were there, and we had a really good time. The next day, someone emailed her and was ticked that I sat on the front row and busily texted folks while in church (Even the producer leaned over at one point and asked my wife what I was doing. When told by my wife, she backed off).

The same thing happened a couple weeks ago when I was attending the 10 a.m. service at the Salem Baptist Church of Chicago. I got the following email from a fellow member:



“From one Salem member to another, do you realize that the cameras at church seem to always catch you while you are texting?



Just thought you’d like to know! On another note, keep of the good work . . . you are one to admired for your skill and talent.”

I wasn’t mad at her; she clearly was trying to apprise me of what some may think I’m doing, and they may not like it. But here was my response: “I’m not texting. I type my sermon notes on my phone. I believe in technology. I can easily send sermon notes this way, rather than writing in a tablet. I don’t worry what someone else is thinking. I focus on my relationship with God and what I’m doing in church. If they are focused on me and not the sermon, then they are not doing what they are supposed to be doing.”

See, I take notes. I used to always write them in notebooks, but with technology, I don’t have to do that now. When I was in Houston at Brookhollow Baptist Church/The Church Without Walls, a fellow member couldn’t attend Bible study, so I sent her my notes. But I had to rewrite them. Now, I can just blast an email out and it’s all good.

When I had my Treo, I also downloaded a Bible program from Laridian.com, that allowed me to have eight different versions of it. So at Salem, Rev. James Meeks uses the King James Version, and at Brookhollow, Pastor Ralph West Sr. uses the NIV. So, with one click, I can change the Bible and follow along.



I love technology and incorporate it into every aspect of my life. But I do think folks need to stay focused on the person in the pulpit and the Lord, and not what the person next to them is doing.