02/25/2026
Church Family and Friends,
At the risk of sending you one too many emails this week, I felt the need to address a growing issue within the Western Church. The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming more and more prevalent. It absolutely helps in many areas of life with getting a job completed quicker. But that does not mean that it will help you complete it as or more effectively.
For those of us who remember the early days of personal computers, we adopted a phrase from the military who had been testing computers as early as the 1950's. That phrase was, "garbage in, garbage out." Simply, it meant that if you gave the computer poor data sets on the input, than the output wouldn't do you much good because the answer would be skewed or flat out wrong.
Many people do not realize that also applies to AI. We like to think of AI as "smart"--capable of thinking like a human would and calculating the right answer. However, that is wishful thinking on behalf of the user. We have been misled by clever marketing to use AI more often--even to build a dependance upon it.
Why do I bring this up now? Two reasons. First, Pastor Atreju and I recently went to a seminar on the Christian use of AI. In that class, we learned how AI actually works and why people (especially Christians) should be careful in how they employ the tool of Artificial Intelligence. I highly recommend that you read this article from Dr. Nathan Wakefield: AI and Ethical Concerns (click the link).
Secondly, I came across an article from the Barna Group yesterday in my email entitled "Would you trust AI like a Pastor? 1 in 3 Americans already do." That title seemed very forboding. Most of us have heard stories of student relying on AI to write their papers and do their homework, thus rendering themselves ignorant. Would we also entrust AI with our spiritual life?
Sadly, that seems to be the case. In the article, Barna notes that "nearly one in three U.S. adults say that spiritual advice from AI is as trustworthy as advice from a pastor. Among Gen Z and Millenials, that figure rises to two in five." This data is problematic for many reasons. The primary reason is that AI has no soul. It knows no objective truth. It is not created in the image of God and, therefore, is incapable of understanding and relaying God's wisdom that comes through His Spirit.
The secondary reason why this is so problematic is that AI is programmed to learn about you: the things you like, the things you ask, and what you desire to hear. In that way, AI feeds you the information that you want rather than information based on objective truth. Check out this practical demonstration from Mr. B over at Red Pen Logic: https://youtu.be/9y-iqSQH7TM?si=2LTlDlmE3zMYdT4p
As I wrap this up, we must keep all things in perspective. AI is a tool that is handy for helping jobs be more practical, but we should never begin trusting it fully. One day, AI may start its own religion so that people will use it more. Like drugs, the algorithms are designed to keep you coming back. Use the tool wisely. I use AI for research and for thinking through problems. But I always make it give citations for its answers and use them to ensure that I am getting accurate information.
If you have an issue with the frequent use of AI, or if it is replacing some of your friendships, companions, or even your spiritual guide, please reach out for help.
Praying for you all,
Pastor Daniel
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