Author: Warren Berkley

Email the address above or comment here if you are interested in receiving future emails.

The Smoke Test

{Looking for failure first}

Warren E. Berkley

Those who know me may remember I did my time in the service in the 1960’s as a musician in an Army band. You may think I got to get up everyday and blow my horn. Well I did. But in the military there are usually other things you have to do, by assignment, that may not be your primary specialty.

I was given the assignment of setting up recording equipment in the band hall for rehearsal purposes. We asked for an audio engineer but that requisition wasn’t fulfilled. We did receive a truck load of professional recording equipment. That consisted of a reel-to-reel tape deck, pre-amplifier, mixer, four mics, boom arms and pedestals, a couple of hundred feet of cable, an output amplifier and speakers. The shipment came in one afternoon. The old man assigned me and another soldier to assemble it all, to be ready for use the next day!

We stayed with the task all night long. I was a trumpet player. He was a flute player. There were no written instructions. That night we did something commonly called a “smoke test.”  We would plug a cable in and see if smoke appeared. If there was no smoke, we would congratulate ourselves and try another connection. The problem with that method was (and is), where there is smoke there is … That’s right. Once there is smoke, something has been damaged already. After burning through a fuse and a couple of connectors, we finally got the sound room equipped with the recording gear and all was well. This brings to the surface a common approach that needs analysis. 

When your first step is to see if something fails, you are already into risk territory. Our approach contained a high level of risk and revealed that we were (a) in a hurry and (b) were not well informed. While we didn’t burn up the equipment, our approach amounted to, “we don’t know if this will work, let’s see what happens.” That’s not high on any scale of wisdom or efficiency. But the “smoke test” lives on in many areas of life.

In marriage, singles may think and even say, “we don’t know if marriage will work for us, but let’s see how it works out.” In this case, smoke may mean divorce, with all the damage that ensues when that happens. This is a case like my experience with electronic equipment. The first step is to see if the relationship fails. There is a far better approach. Go way back to the beginning when marriage first started. Who instituted marriage? Shouldn’t He be consulted? Reading what God has said with humble submission to His superior will is far better than the smoke text. “We don’t know what will happen, let’s see if this works?” Let God tell you what ought to happen. (Matt. 19:1-9; Heb. 13:4)

In parenting, those who’ve not attended to wisdom may remark, “we don’t know how to do this, but we will rely on trial and error.” Such a “plan” demonstrates that the parents don’t really know what they are doing. And “trial and error” does not generate trust in the hearts of children. Thoughtful and deliberate approaches to parenting can be accessed by opening God’s book. (Eph. 6:1-4)

In social media, there isn’t any doubt the “smoke test” has gained traction. “I don’t know if this is true. I’ll just post or tweet it and see what happens.” That’s a high level of risk that you are spreading misinformation (error). Altered photos pass through fiber optic cables millions of times per second, and while no visible smoke may appear, the fire of falsehood is distributed and re-distributed. (Col. 3:9; Prov. 23:23)

Trial and error can lead to more trial and error! Read the instructions. Get help. It can all work without the “smoke test.”

Concerning the Accomplishments of the Spasmodic Attenders

Harold Turner

The “lukewarm” Christian/’spasmodic attender’ accomplishes the following things:

1. They frustrate the elders in the obligation they have to feed the flock (Acts 20:28).
2. They set a bad example for their children, neighbors, and members of their family who are not Christians.
3. They illustrate that the joy of service is not theirs.
4. They treat the building up of the local church as though it was nothing at all.
5. They prove by action that they have not counted the cost of their discipleship.
6. They think that the minimum constitutes faithfulness, disregarding the Lord’s teachings on the subject (cf. Luke 17: 10).
7. They show his lack of concern for the faithful brethren who “break their necks” to be consistent and faithful in the matter of attendance.
8. They parade — for all to see — the price tag they put on the local church, the work of the local church, and the overall influence of the local church.

“Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far-gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.” (Romans 13:11-12)

I Hope To See You

Warren E. Berkley

Yes, I know. As I write and post this, I am fully aware that mine is only one voice in a growing chorus. Still, putting these thoughts into words will help me—and perhaps encourage greater vigilance among those who read them. These concerns have deepened as I have studied and taught the book of Acts this year.

In our present culture, I fear that we are gradually drifting away from meaningful, devoted, face-to-face relationships.

It is easy to send a text, write an email, connect through social media, stream a service, stay home, and look at a screen. These tools can be useful, but they should never replace genuine personal interaction. I hope and pray that we do not lose the direct, face-to-face fellowship seen throughout the book of Acts. This divinely designed and necessary connection with real people is what God intends, is it not? He said, “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Gen. 2:18). Ecclesiastes 4 reminds us that “two are better than one,” and Proverbs 18:24 speaks of a true friend who is closer than a brother.

In the book of Acts, believers gathered together (Acts 2:42–47) and drew strength from those genuine relationships (Acts 4:24; 14:22; 16:5; 18:23). Christians stood “shoulder to shoulder” in heart and in work. They shared a strong sense of community and family—something Satan was always trying to infiltrate and divide.

They sought one another out, helped one another, and labored side by side. In doing so, they nurtured what Paul called “the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3). I hope and pray that our togetherness will not be weakened by technology that is quick and convenient but often impersonal. If technology has allowed us to drift apart, may we make a deliberate effort to reconnect. As John wrote in 3 John, “I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.”

Technology is like every other tool people use: it can serve good or harmful purposes; it can help or destroy. Do not throw away your phone, abandon your computer, or discard your iPad. Instead, let us remain keenly aware of technology’s power to divide and conquer us. Instant answers from an AI platform can weaken our ability to think deeply. Instant yet virtual contact can slowly draw us away from what John desired: “I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face” (3 John 14).