What If I Hate AI, But My Job Demands It?

Since the rise of platforms like Open AI, almost every author I work with wants to include a section about AI somewhere in their book. I often discourage this because in the nine months it takes for a book to go to print, much of what they’ve written might be out of date and would be better packaged as a blog post.

Each time I have AI conversations with an author, I'm constantly amazed at how AI is transforming so many different areas, including the service industry, real estate, and medical practice. The sheer speed of this transformation is mind-blowing, and here are the three biggest changes I’ve noticed.

Change #1: AI Is Normalizing Remote Work

Prior to Covid, it was still taboo to have Zoom meetings when you could meet in person. And yes, some companies have pushed for employees to be back in the office. However, the acceptance of remote work has made my present job possible.

While there are some cons to remote work, here are the major pros. You can now live anywhere and still earn a great living. Because AI has opened up so many new opportunities, it’s possible to operate in “flyover country” and still interact with high-paying customers in major city centers. This means if you’re a bi-vocational pastor in Little Rock, Arkansas, you can earn more as a part-time online creator than you might earn working full-time at a local business—thus freeing you up to spend a lot more time pastoring your congregation.

And for co-vocational (a term I prefer more than bi-vocational) church planters who are thinking about moving from rural to urban environments where the cost of living is much more than their current setting, they can spend six months to a year building up their income online, continuing that job when they move, and operating at a livable wage–as opposed to the common route of moving to an expensive area and working a job that doesn't support a family.

Change #2: AI Is Shifting the Baseline

For years, I’ve heard many Christians (especially those who are skeptical of technological advancement) say things like, “Them crazy computers will never be able to replace what I can do with my own two hands.” And for a while, that made sense…kind of. But as AI continues to increase, it’s become apparent to many that they will need to shift how they view technology.

Here's the problem. As AI advancements increase, the comforts we enjoy will expand, but the lack of affordable housing will only increase. Thus, Christians who want to be salt and light in more expensive areas will be forced to make one of two decisions: adapt their understanding of AI or move to more rural areas where it's more affordable.

AI has certainly shifted the baseline of what I do. When I first started ghostwriting several years ago, I would sit on Zoom calls with authors and type furiously as they talked—hoping I captured their every word. Now, I record our conversations, upload the transcript into AI software, and from that 45-minute conversation, I have around 8,000 words of rough text that is free from all the uhs and uhms.

This approach helps me be extra precise by not missing my authors' main points or having them waste time clarifying confusing statements. It also allows me to listen attentively and pay extra attention to their tone and style. Now, the service I provide today is much superior to what I was able to offer a few years ago.

Change #3: AI Has Improved In Precision But Still Struggles With Intuition

As one of my authors best explained to me, humans are meant for intuition, and machines are meant for precision.

I know I’m overly sensitive to this because it’s my world, but I can’t tell you what a turnoff AI feeling content is to me. In case this isn't your world, two of the primary tell-tale signs of AI are contrasting sentences (“John didn’t just give a good presentation; he gave a great one!”) and dashes. Chat GPT loves dashes—like, so totally much.

Anytime I see influencers on social media lean on too much AI for their posts, I immediately want to unfollow them. Why? Because their writing has lost its humanity, and I feel like I’m getting a lazy, cheap version of a person. A better approach is to use AI tools as a general proofreader to clear up obvious errors and then bring your full humanity to the table.

Lean on AI for precision, but bring your human intuition.

So What Should You Do?

If you're retired, a good thing to do is pray for your kids and grandkids as they navigate the added complexities of AI in their workplaces and homes. Think back to the technological revolutions you experienced in your career and the challenges these brought to you as you struggled to adapt. Then, ask God to extend added grace to those you love.

Assuming you're not retired, here are several steps I'd recommend:

First, be curious and take AI seriously. You don't have to become an AI expert overnight to reap some great benefits. Instead, start small. Spend at least a few minutes each week studying new AI tools. Take it seriously and recognize that if you do not adapt, there is a strong likelihood that the skills you hold today will diminish in value—not because you’ve gotten worse at your trade, but because the baseline is moving.

Second, create more unplugged God time. The more involved our lives become with technology, the more our need for "blue lines" that allow our minds to unplug from algorithms. In Restless Devices, Felicia Wu Song writes, “The great irony is that the more we demand our brains to attend to being productive, the less our brains are able to grow us as persons in key areas of identity construction and empathy.”[1]

Third, be a "realer" person. I sometimes joke that when I first started working with authors five years ago, I received rough manuscripts that needed an English professor. Now, I receive perfectly polished manuscripts that have lost their humanity.

It used to be that people attended church or went to business workshops to learn something. Now, things are very different. People still want to learn and have their minds challenged, but they also have so much access to information that their real internal craving is human authenticity.

To this point, one of the verses I'm having my kids memorize is Genesis 1:27, "So God created man in his own image; he created him in the image of God; he created them male and female." As image bearers, we have a unique opportunity.

Two days ago, I was sitting in a coffee shop when a young guy approached me and said, "You seem like a business person. Mind if I pick your brain on a few things?" For the next few minutes, we chatted about the future of tech and how he could grow his online business.

After some friendly back-and-forth, I asked him what role his faith played in his work. He said he was spiritual but had little interest in attending church. At this point, I smiled and pushed back a bit. I told him that as work gets more complex, the need for real relationships becomes all the more important. Certainly a relationship with God, but also real relationships with his image bearers.

I pass this same advice on to you. Yes, the future of AI might scare you, but it shouldn't. Rather than run in fear or feel overwhelmed at the speed of change, lean in, become a student, and reflect the image of God to those who desperately crave something real.

[1] Felicia Wu Song, Restless Devices: Recovering Personhood, Presence, and Place in the Digital Age (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2021), 158.