S
stevi_holy
Guest
Theyre lurking in your computer. Tiny programs that sneak into your hard drivehidden inside many free downloads from the Web. Known as adware and spyware, they act as electronic espionage agents, reporting on your Web-browsing habits to people who want to spam you with ads for their products or to sell your personal information to other companies. In some cases, spyware can record keystrokes during online transactions and steal credit card numbers or other private data.
One respected technology writer says no Internet user is immune. The way to get rid of these cyber-moles is to run a program that will scan your computer, identify the unwanted files, and ask if you want to eliminate them. One click will do the job but it requires choice and action. Fortunately, many good anti-spyware programs are free and readily available online.
This new technological threat reminds me of an age-old spiritual danger. Each of us possesses a vulnerable spiritual storage area of mind, emotion, and will. The Bible calls it our heartthe center of our being. Every day we take in sounds, sights, ideas, and feelings, some of which must be identified and eliminated before they cause spiritual harm. The psalmist recognized his need for a heartscan when he prayed: Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:23-24).
When we offer that prayer, we invite the Holy Spirit to move through our mind and heart, like an anti-spyware program, to show us things that are wrong. When He highlights a sinful thought, attitude, or action, we can confess it to the Lord and receive His forgiveness. As adware and attitudes are recurring, so is our need for the process that identifies and removes them.
Perhaps right now is the time for a heartscan. And as the on-screen message often says: Please be patientthis may take a few minutes
One respected technology writer says no Internet user is immune. The way to get rid of these cyber-moles is to run a program that will scan your computer, identify the unwanted files, and ask if you want to eliminate them. One click will do the job but it requires choice and action. Fortunately, many good anti-spyware programs are free and readily available online.
This new technological threat reminds me of an age-old spiritual danger. Each of us possesses a vulnerable spiritual storage area of mind, emotion, and will. The Bible calls it our heartthe center of our being. Every day we take in sounds, sights, ideas, and feelings, some of which must be identified and eliminated before they cause spiritual harm. The psalmist recognized his need for a heartscan when he prayed: Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:23-24).
When we offer that prayer, we invite the Holy Spirit to move through our mind and heart, like an anti-spyware program, to show us things that are wrong. When He highlights a sinful thought, attitude, or action, we can confess it to the Lord and receive His forgiveness. As adware and attitudes are recurring, so is our need for the process that identifies and removes them.
Perhaps right now is the time for a heartscan. And as the on-screen message often says: Please be patientthis may take a few minutes
