Torch, Summer 1984

pertain to the topic at hand and the computer will recall all the notations on that topic. It will also give me the bibliographic information as I go along in case I want to refer back to the original book for further information . Once the book is done, the computer will print out the complete bibliography for the whole book . The actual writing process of the book will be made much simpler. I will run off drafts of the book for my consultants to mull over. Once their comments are returned, instead of typing the revised book over again, I can simply use the editing features of the word processing program to move the material around, add further material, delete material, and even check the spelling . The word processing program will even automatically construct for me a table of contents and an index. The computer also can add footnotes correctly and automatically. With the writing tasks I am contemplating, you can easily see how a computer would catch my interest. And now that I am hooked on the use of a word processor, I find that there are a zillion more uses for the computer. It keeps track of my social security number, insurance policy numbers, mailing lists (sorting the lists by zip code), and other bits and pieces of ordinarily easy-to-lose information. My little computer will also handle the very useful financial spreadsheets . The spreadsheet allows me to key in such information as the base salaries of various hospital employees, the percentage of housing allowance, the percentage of cost-of-living allowances , and other such information. Once the base salary is listed and the formulae are entered, one stroke of a key causes the computer to calculate the figures on the entire sheet in a VERY few seconds. Then I can do "what if?" calculations . I can ask the computer, "What if we were to increase the salary by 3 percent or if we were to decrease the housing allowance by 2 percent? What would the bottom line look like?" These complex calculations will be done immediately and correctly . The administration of the Memorial Christian Hospital is simplified with the use of the computer. There are yet other uses . In our Literature Division in Bangladesh we are using a computer that does word processing in English OR BENGALI. Further, once the text is written, the computer will pop out a copy in whatever type, whatever size, whatever format we desire and the copy will be "camera-ready" for making offset plates for use on our printing press. The computer will also automatically create a concordance for the entire Bengali Bible. Neat, huh? More and more missionaries are coming to the field with training in sociology and related sciences. They have the training to be able to explore the population of any given area and ferret out the subgroups that might be expected to respond more readily to the Gospel. The management of such survey information is "duck soup" with a computer and a "pain in the gizzard" without it. Similarly, I am using the computer to keep track of the results on a clinical experiment that we are running on the treatment of tetanus. We have treated over 800 cases of tetanus in our hospital. To sort through that volume of information by hand would sorely strain my sanctification . The computer does it without even denting my patience . Did you-know that the entire King James Version of the Bible is now available for use on the computer? It makes English Bible study a whole new ball game . For those in the States, there are computers that store the biblical texts in Greek and Hebrew . Through a gadget called a modem, a Bible student thousands of miles away can link into this information via the telephone lines. There is no end in sight to the ways in which the computer will make the job of the Christian worker easier and more productive . Presently our hospital could make good use (pant, pant!) of a multi-terminal computer system. Such a system would allow us to do all sorts of fancy things . It could be used for word processing or filing or any other such use already mentioned, but it would have far more uses . It could be used to keep track of all our medical records, our inventory, our book– keeping, our laboratory results, our interdepartmental communications, personnel reports, and other information. I could dither on endlessly about the benefits of the computer. Suffice it to say that if the computer is used ONLY for word processing and mailing list management, it will be MORE than worth every penny paid. I consistently work a sixteen-hour day. Whenever I can save time and energy with the computer, it will allow me that much more productivity in His service. May I make a suggestion to churches? When your missionary comes home on furlough, .encourage him or her to get a short course on computer literacy at a local college . Pay his fees . Then, encourage the missioqary to visit the computer department at Cedarville College where he can discuss his potential uses of a computer. Then, Cedarville personnel can suggest the computer and software that is needed to do his job. And the church can pay for it, of course! We are all concerned with doing the best possible job for the Lord. We are all impressed that there is a great amount of work to be done and that time is of the essence. In the past few decades we have incorporated into Christian work many new and helpful technologies. There is perhaps no other technology now known that can assist the missionary quite like the computer. It is not for everyone. But for those who are involved in writing, research, information manage– ment, Bible translation, and related ministries, the computer is definitely a great step forward. Dr. Donn W. Ketcham is a missionary doctor with the Association of Baptists for World Evangelism and serves in Bangladesh. He has been director of the Memorial Christian Hospital and has been engaged in Bible translation, teaching, writing, counseling, and vil– lage evangelism. Recently, he has been creating an educa– tional curriculum for theological coursework in addition to a textbook, both to be translated into Bengali. 13