God's Love/Hate Relationship With Your Cell Phone

Everyone, I am going to ask you to do something that I know is scary. Don't worry though, because I'm doing it to, and we are going to make it through this together. I want us to turn our phones off. Wait! Don't run away, like I said, it is going to be O.K. We'll do it together, I'm right here with you.

My phone is off now, and I hope yours is too, otherwise I just became that weird guy who turned his phone off when no one else did, which would result in me not being one of the cool kids anymore, which would in turn require me to seek asylum in the Ukraine. See, bad things happen when you don't support people.

It is, however, time for me to get to my point. Some of you may have already guessed what that point is going to be, and may be slightly put off. This might seem like it is shaping up to be one of those Christian rants about how modern technology is evil and if we really want to be holy, we have to go back to using chisels and hammers, with our most techno-savvy citizens shattering social norms by way of carrier pigeon.

Most of the time, I feel that those who choose to promote this "simplicity gospel", disregard all the good that has been done for God and by God through the use of technology. From His global Church body to each of our individual lives, I am confident that technology has had a significant impact for the better. However, I think completely ignoring the voice of those who speak against things such as social media, cell phones, and the internet brings with it just as great a danger as blindly proclaiming to all who will listen that the iPhone in their pocket is going to land them a special place in hell next to people who talk too much in the theatre.

The danger of involving oneself in technology too intensely was something that never hit home for me until I heard an interesting point put forward by one of the pastors of one of the Christian groups on Western's campus. This pastor suggested, in a very reasonable way, that the reason the modern Church, particularly young people within the Church, have trouble with things such as understanding God's voice or embracing the gift of prophecy is because of the impact of the "instantization" of communication within our society.

At first, I wrote this theory off as more behind the times drivel from an out of touch old man who didn't understand me at all. The more I pondered this and worked it through with trusted brothers and sisters, however, the more I became deeply concerned about my level of interaction with social media and other forms of often-instanct communication. Has my brain been trained to accept messages only if they are delivered with fanfare and revelry (beeping and pretty colors) in a manner that does not require me to wait for them or allow any anticipation to build? How has this reworking of my thought process, the way in which I communicate, altered (and maybe even cheapened) my relationship with God?

Questions like these, though difficult, are something which I think we must force ourselves to ask. The challenge is, it is even harder to ask those questions when we are fully immersed in the very thing which might be negatively impacting our relationship with God, or, for someone who might not know the Lord, the ability to hear that first, beautiful glimpse of His voice. I am not going to say we should burn all our tech and go back to hand-written letters delivered on horse back. I do, however, think it might be a good idea to leave our phones off for a little bit longer, and hopefully in the process begin to relearn what it means to listen patiently, letting the anticipation build so that when we finally receive the message we have been longing to hear, it sounds all the sweeter.

With His love, and hopefully His grace,

Taylor