Smart Phones: Be a Smart Christian
Maybe you remember this from Jonathan Swift’s satire called Gulliver’s Travels. The Lilliputians (little people) believe Gulliver’s clock is his god. Why? Because he seldom does anything without referring to his clock. He tells them that it points out the time for all his actions. This response provided a picture of how enslaved such people had become to time management. It raises the question: What might the Lilliputians think is our god today, if judged by what we check constantly, the thing we consult before doing just about anything? You know the answer: our smart phones!
Steve Jobs introduced the smart phone in 2007. By 2011 in America, 35% of the people had one. In 2021, according to Pew Research, that had risen to 85%! In 2017 Psychologist Jean Twengy had an article in The Atlantic magazine entitled “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?” pointing out that since their arrival there has been an acceleration of mental health problems, antisocial behavior, and extended adolescents among youth. She’s not advising based on a Christian perspective, yet she says, “If you were going to give advice for a happy adolescence based on our data, it would be this: Put down the phone, turn off the laptop, and do something – anything – that does not involve a screen.”
Much of my info for this article is taken from a Christian Standard article by Tyler McKenzie in the May/ June 2022 issue. He quotes Linda Stone, who in 1998 coined the phrase “Continuous Partial Attention.” What did she mean by that? She meant that things like smart phones constantly interrupt life. An example: You are going to say your daily short prayer, maybe the Lord’s Prayer. “Our Father which art in Heaven…” and the phone buzzes. It’s a friend group notifying you of a prayer request, of all things. You continue, “Hallowed be your name…” and the phone buzzes. It’s your calendar, reminding you of a meeting later in the day. Again, “Thy kingdom come, thy…” and the phone buzzes. It’s your sibling, “Just checking in.” Again, “thy will be done, on earth…” and guess what? This happens all day long. You have trouble giving anything more than “partial attention” due to your phone’s interruptions.
There is a school in San Francisco called The San Francisco Waldorf School. 75% of the students there have parents who work in the Silicon Valley doing tech work. They have a strict “no screens” policy at the school, meaning no phones, no computers allowed. Students learn to sew, they learn to churn butter by hand, they learn to sweep, to do dishes, to dehydrate fruit, etc. CBS News reported that the “tech elite” in America are spending “up to $40,000 per year to wall their kids off from their own creations.” Meanwhile they get rich selling those creations to you, me, and our kids, wanting us to do what they know shouldn’t be done.
Are smart phones all bad? No, of course not. Like so many things, it all has to do with our use of them, of our willingness and ability to discipline that use in good ways, while guarding against letting them dominate us, to take us places we shouldn’t go. As Christians we need to harness the good but refuse to mindlessly allow them to replace face-to-face social interaction, refuse to allow them to dominate our time. How do we do that? Slow down for a minute, put the phone away, and have that conversation. If the phone becomes a sinful albatross around our neck, cut it off and throw it away (see Mark 9:43).
The Lilliputians are watching, what do they think? Seriously, God sees all we do, how does he view our use of the smart phone? Be a disciple with this just like all areas of your life.
Steve Jobs introduced the smart phone in 2007. By 2011 in America, 35% of the people had one. In 2021, according to Pew Research, that had risen to 85%! In 2017 Psychologist Jean Twengy had an article in The Atlantic magazine entitled “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?” pointing out that since their arrival there has been an acceleration of mental health problems, antisocial behavior, and extended adolescents among youth. She’s not advising based on a Christian perspective, yet she says, “If you were going to give advice for a happy adolescence based on our data, it would be this: Put down the phone, turn off the laptop, and do something – anything – that does not involve a screen.”
Much of my info for this article is taken from a Christian Standard article by Tyler McKenzie in the May/ June 2022 issue. He quotes Linda Stone, who in 1998 coined the phrase “Continuous Partial Attention.” What did she mean by that? She meant that things like smart phones constantly interrupt life. An example: You are going to say your daily short prayer, maybe the Lord’s Prayer. “Our Father which art in Heaven…” and the phone buzzes. It’s a friend group notifying you of a prayer request, of all things. You continue, “Hallowed be your name…” and the phone buzzes. It’s your calendar, reminding you of a meeting later in the day. Again, “Thy kingdom come, thy…” and the phone buzzes. It’s your sibling, “Just checking in.” Again, “thy will be done, on earth…” and guess what? This happens all day long. You have trouble giving anything more than “partial attention” due to your phone’s interruptions.
There is a school in San Francisco called The San Francisco Waldorf School. 75% of the students there have parents who work in the Silicon Valley doing tech work. They have a strict “no screens” policy at the school, meaning no phones, no computers allowed. Students learn to sew, they learn to churn butter by hand, they learn to sweep, to do dishes, to dehydrate fruit, etc. CBS News reported that the “tech elite” in America are spending “up to $40,000 per year to wall their kids off from their own creations.” Meanwhile they get rich selling those creations to you, me, and our kids, wanting us to do what they know shouldn’t be done.
Are smart phones all bad? No, of course not. Like so many things, it all has to do with our use of them, of our willingness and ability to discipline that use in good ways, while guarding against letting them dominate us, to take us places we shouldn’t go. As Christians we need to harness the good but refuse to mindlessly allow them to replace face-to-face social interaction, refuse to allow them to dominate our time. How do we do that? Slow down for a minute, put the phone away, and have that conversation. If the phone becomes a sinful albatross around our neck, cut it off and throw it away (see Mark 9:43).
The Lilliputians are watching, what do they think? Seriously, God sees all we do, how does he view our use of the smart phone? Be a disciple with this just like all areas of your life.