AI and I

--A plea for authenticity

It’s already here.

In case you weren’t already aware, artificial intelligence is already on the move and in widespread use. And in spite of the problems it’s already created (like personal data leaks and legal issues), it’s not going away anytime soon.

In order to avoid sounding like an old Scrooge who hates progress, I will refrain from griping too much. In fact, I’ll begin by admitting that some of the header images from my blogs are now AI-generated. Why? Because they’re easy to make, they often match my content better than a random photo I took, and using them doesn’t take away from the value of my writing.

I’m not blind. I recognize the value of AI for enabling people to complete hundreds of mind-numbing tasks in a fraction of the time it used to take, thus minimizing errors and fatigue. I can also see how it could be helpful and useful even in creative or everyday processes. A busy mom stuck at home with sick children can use AI to create a grocery list based off of meals she wants to make. Cool! A blogger wants to write an article that mentions how many times the word “creation” is mentioned in one season of a popular TV show; AI could save him the hours it would take to research that so he can focus on writing the actual article. Amazing!

However, we cannot forget that “easy” often blurs important considerations and elements of the human experience like judgment, emotional intelligence, and basic skills. When something is easy, we forget to compartmentalize it and ask important questions like: is this the right time to use this? How is this affecting me and others? Could it be harmful? 

My blog today is a simple plea for humans with actual intelligence to fight for authenticity in our world, especially in creative writing, spiritual matters, and interpersonal relationships.

Consider this? Do you really want to accidentally text your crush a dinner invite that has “FRIEND’S NAME” inserted because you forgot to enter theirs, leaving them wondering why you couldn’t just be yourself?

Do you want your kids to wonder if someone has used AI to trick them into thinking someone they like is trying to message them on social media…only to be humiliated by a fake later?

Do you want to have to wonder if your pastor took the time to care about the eternal implications in his sermon and if it’s even based on his own research, experience, and relationship with the Lord?

Do you want your favorite authors to have to compete in a market flooded with cheap knockoffs alongside work they’ve put their heart and soul and years of expertise into?

Do you want to do double the work explaining what you want AI to do when there could be benefits to just using your own skills to do it yourself?

Based on our society’s use of the current information available, do you really think the general public (ourselves included) are mature enough to handle information that can “hallucinate” or even prove illegal depending on the context?

Above all, here’s the main issue I want to address.

Just because a shortcut exists doesn’t mean it will give you what you really want out of an experience.

There’s a HUGE difference between asking a computer program for a good sentence to add to your story and the years spent falling in love with words, sentence structure, and plot via reading, writing, and the relationship you develop with your writing projects over time because of the effort and personality and heart you put into them. The latter is what makes a book or a conference presentation worth someone’s time and money.

The effort you took to type out an actual email to a person you'd like to get to know better reveals the value you place on the potential relationship and your desire for the person to know the real you.

And the process of applying scriptural truths to the struggles we're currently facing in real time is actually commanded in the Bible as a necessity for spiritual maturity--transformation by the renewal of your minds so that you may test and approve the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12). This is a human process. AI simply can't duplicate it and isn't meant to.

When you understand the value of something and truly love it (as opposed to just treating it like a finish-line, check-the-box kind of thing), you’re willing to take all the steps that are necessary to obtain or experience it—including the steps that are hard, hidden, unpopular, awkward, or unrecognized. Deny yourself the process, and you're often left with a cheap imitation of the real thing you were after--image with no substance. The easy road has consequences; they are simply delayed.

Hiding from the world and ignoring what’s going on out of fear or indignation is not an option for Christians. We certainly need to learn how to utilize and understand the new tools at our disposal so that we can protect and educate ourselves and glorify God in everything we do.

But as these tools are misused along with all the others, giving the world bigger reasons to spiral out of control and question reality, it’s more important than ever for believers to stay connected to the Truth Himself, proclaiming and living out His glorious plan for mankind.

We are made in the image and likeness of God with lives that were written in His Book before they came to be, and those real lives are worth fighting for (Psalm 139).

I refuse to surrender my personal struggles and triumphs over to a machine. There is simply no substitute for the journey.

Please join me.