A few weeks ago, my 5-year-old, who’s not able to read yet, told me that I have to USE MY IMAGINATION while she was flipping through the pages of a non-picture book. Out of the mouth of babes is some of the universe’s deepest wisdom. Her PERSONA is full of quick wit, storytelling mastery, and humor.
Only humans have personalities. Each one of us has a unique set of ingredients ranging from our souls, hearts, wisdom, experiences, and desires. Imagine that! This is where ChatGPT fails to be the hero of this story.
The world has a lot to say about ChatGPT! Some are thrilled, others are scared, and others are sitting on the fence…I raise my hand as a straddler!
For those of us that prefer to reside under a rock, ChatGPT, an OpenAI language model stands for Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer. It’s the popular but yet controversial artificial intelligence tool that does research and writing…makes life seemingly easier.
In my own contemplation of the good and bad, I was initially disgusted by ChatGPT by all the empty promises of making life easy. I believe writing or any sort of creation deserves old-school approaches of hard work, skill, and mastery. However, as I started down the rabbit hole of how many different industries are using this type of technology for good, I started poking holes in my own thinking.
All The Good
We have been inventing and creating since the book of Genesis. Every single “thing” in this world from the wheel to the tractor, from the computer to the iPhone, from the dollar to crypto…all are thoughtful designs of creation to innovation. This is good, right?
With every innovation, there is always a fear that machines or tech are replacing humans. Though warranted fear, this hasn’t quite happened to an extent that robots are replacing humans. With every creation is another human making the creation. So let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater quite yet…there are and will be benefits beyond our wildest IMAGINATION as OpenAI is just the next iteration to the capabilities of the internet.
Before writing this article, I decided to take ChatGPT for a test run to help concrete my thoughts. As promised, it spit out an excellent response to my question in a matter of SECONDS. Hello Instant Pot and goodbye to my slow cooker! I’m being facetious as I am all about the art and discipline of slow cooking…the slow life!
If you’re wondering, my question to ChatGPT was how to obtain work-life balance. YES, I asked a platform built on speed about work-life balance! It formatted an excellent response and even offered to rephrase the response. The tool displayed the ability to scan, research, utilize language, curate information, and correct misconceptions in about 5 seconds. ChatGPT gave me advice on how to slow down…paradoxical right?
Here is the reality of this experience…this tool is not completely new! In fact, it felt very familiar to other devices that are constantly hovering over our lives through tools like Google, Alexa, Grammarly, and Siri!
Despite other tools that look like this, the primary question from ethicists and policymakers is: “Is ChatGPT going too far”? Maybe not? Maybe so?
We have to read behind the label!
All the Warnings
Platforms like ChatGPT have infinite possibilities across all industries, but it comes with numerous warning labels. ChatGPT is also very open about all the risks that come with their tool…risks of plagiarism, inaccuracies, biases, privacy issues, economic disruption, and lack of transparency. If I had to summarize my own warning labels, here would be my top 5:
*Don’t let children under the age of 21 play with this tool unattended.
*Don’t use this tool to pretend to be like someone you’re not.
*Don’t use this tool thinking this solves the problem of getting more things done.
*Don’t use this tool because everyone else is using it.
*Don’t use this tool because this can make you look better.
Like any product purchased off the shelf, we have to read the fine print to assess the risks. My warnings are all about “character” and that is where the controversy stands with anyone that is on the fence about this tool.
The front label on ChatGPT promotes the ability to be more productive, faster, and perfect! These attributes aren’t bad by any means, but we must be careful not to get caught up in envy, idolatry, and vanity. The back of the label, as it relates to character, says that more and better is not for everyone.
The promise of more and better is what started the fall of mankind when Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the forbidden tree of knowledge. Is it ironic that we are creating more tools that give us knowledge?
When Adam and Eve chose incorrectly, this earth fell into a constant state of groaning, shame, restlessness, and toil. We can’t fix this! Only God can do this when Jesus returns to redeem and make ALL things new and perfect. Until that time, we will continue to be sinners, continue to make mistakes, and we will continue to have typos in our life, but saved from hell ONLY by God’s grace through the blood of Jesus Christ.
This is not an excuse to be bad nor is it an excuse not to work hard and pursue excellence. God wants us to do good works (Ephesians 2:10). This is a call to look more at our deeper motives in life, grow in faithfulness, and be good stewards of our time (Ephesians 5: 15-16).
Humans tend to qualify value by productivity, profitability, or speed. BUT…
“…Our true measure of success by God is our faithfulness to Him.”
God expects obedience to whatever “lot” we’ve been given in this world. Only then, in our faith to follow Jesus, we will be held accountable to our righteousness once we have accepted Jesus as our Savior over our flaws…our typos.
So if our ChatGPT helps the stewardship of our obedience to God, then go for it! But the warning label says that using any tool for motives that elevate ourselves over elevating God could be a road going in the wrong direction.
All The Authentic Ingredients
Excellency matters! So does authenticity! Real organic ingredients are better for us than synthesized materials. When using tools created on the premises of “artificial intelligence”, we must continue to challenge our ability to remain authentic in our crafts.
Optimizing our, time, productivity, and activities are all good. This is good stewardship to do things well, with excellence. But it has to be “authentic”, not artificial. AI can help all of us look and feel perfect! But let’s be watchful of our motives like vanity and envy. Yes AI can “seemingly” help us perfect language better than any professor, author, or editor at a quick click of a button, but that’s where we are potentially making the worst type of typo by replacing our own imagination!
Our typos are where we learn from our mistakes. Our typos in life are where we can receive God’s grace. Our typos can sometimes represent our own scars that make and molds us into who we are designed to be. Our typos represent tests…those tests in life have purposes to draw us closer to God. When we look at each other, let’s embrace it all, even our typos…this is true love.
Don’t be quick to judge, instead, let’s first remove the log in our own eyes. I am not perfect, nor are you. This type of authenticity matters in a world that loves to cancel us when we make mistakes! Authenticity in our minute-by-minute daily lives helps us realize that we all have typos. When we share these typos, our setbacks, with the world, we inspire others to remove their masks. We become more loving, forgiving, and empathetic to the world around us because we realize that we all have struggles.
All the Remaining Questions
I can’t tell you not to use ChatGPT! Who am I to judge? I use Alexa, Siri, and Google all day long to get information to help me with my projects. In fact, Grammarly is hovering over my screen right now correcting my typos (it’s currently sitting at 58!). I am sharing this because I don’t want you to think I am perfect, NOR do I want you to trip over my mistakes wherever you may see this in this article. My goal is authenticity, sharing my heart, and helping others approach life focused on values that glorify God.
Technology is all around us…even for those of us that live under the rock! We must be slow to jump on every invention out there. With that, as we contemplate the use of any type of technology including ChatGPT, we must individually ask ourselves four thought-provoking questions.
- Is this tool good or bad stewardship of my God-given talents?
- Will this tool be used for good of others or abuse my personality?
- Does this tool help me to strengthen my authenticity or make me something that I’m really not?
- Is this tool giving me more space and time to pursue a relationship with God or more time to pursue my own interests?
The last 25 years have transformed our lives to be operated by technology. Computers, the internet, smart devices, and now OpenAI is at the source of all that we do. I caution all users not to lose our values with the use of these platforms and devices. They are all tools, not human replicas. We have hearts, souls, and imaginations!
We create good with our imaginations, especially with God. But when we lose our imagination, we also lose our identity in the pursuit of a better world that God already has under control. Like many man-made creations of the past, AI can easily be misused for the glory of everything and everyone while removing God.
So regardless of what tools you use to do your job, remember that faithfulness is the goal. It’s the mark of success! In that faithful journey, instead of asking ChatGPT for the answer, ask God who is the author and provider of wisdom.
James 1:2-6 (ESV) states,
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
Lastly, let me leave you with the words of a classic oldie, “Personality”, by Lloyd Price. Though this has nothing to do with AI, it has a LOT to do with not living by the virtues of AI. As we live our days authentically, faithfully, and empathically, let’s remember at the core of humanity is love for God, love for others, and lots of personality.
Over and over, I tried to prove my love to you.
Over and over, what more can I do?
Over and over, my friends say I’m a fool.
But over and over, I’ll be a fool for you.
‘Cause you got personality
Walk, with personality
Talk, with personality
Smile, with personality
Charm, with personality
Love, with personality
And of Cause you’ve got
A great big heart