My CD Walkman from 2006

Have you ever found an old piece of technology and simply laughed at its archaic form?  A few days ago, I pulled a CD walkman out of a drawer.  These portable devices had ESP, or "electronic skip protection."  It started out that three or four second ESP was revolutionary.  If your CD skipped, the device would already have read the information ahead three seconds and provide you with seamless listening.  The particular walkman I found in my drawer had 60 second ESP!

     I was amused at how absolutely obsolete this device is today.  The CD walkman could play one CD at a time, for a total of 10-12 songs.  I have an ipod that holds days worth of music and "skipping" is not an issue.  In addition to a whole library of music, I have news, e-mail, pictures, video, and other apps for things I didn't even know I needed to do.    When I looked at the bottom of the walkman I saw a sticker that read "manufactured in 2006."  In only 6 years, this device has become essentially useless! 

     One of the prized values of our age is the ability to change.  It is almost the creed of our modern time.  It is espoused in education, politics, technology, business, and religion.  The world is changing with exponential rapidity.  In fact, we may be living amidst the most blistering pace of change the world has ever known.  You have to keep up or be left behind.  There is a great fear that we will be rendered obsolete.  No one wants to be a portable CD player manufactured in 2006. 

     The pace of life will only continue to increase with intensity.  While the ability to change is important, I believe there will also be an increasing desire for changeless things.  Already, I sense among many people a longing for security, stability, and simplicity.  Staring at a CD walkman or a record player, one might wonder, "What is it that doesn't change?"  There are things like "faith, hope, and love."  And of course, there is the One who "is the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Heb. 13:8). 

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