Ding. Ring. Better check. Must like. Have to reply. Follow. Must know. Any updates? Click. Swipe. Post. Next. Watch now or it will be gone. Don’t miss out. Repeat often.
“Taking every thought captive” (2 Corinthians 10:5) is getting more and more challenging. No longer just a sifting of good and bad thoughts, we are being inundated with a tidal wave of information 24/7. Torrents of media. Downpours of updates. A deluge of group texts. Monsoons of emails.
And like water running down a mountainside, many of us are taking the path of least resistance. Once fully immersed, the current moves us swiftly downstream toward more, more, more – and we haven’t even addressed the demands of the workplace that follow us around.
I’m certainly not against media, work, learning, staying connected or devices, but I believe most would agree we are more distracted than ever before. It’s a wonder we can finish a sentence or have a conversation – mind if I reply to this real quick? – without interruption. Our minds are constantly busy, often far away from the present moment and present company.
Today’s technology is teaching us impatience (which I don’t think is a fruit of the Spirit) so that we are not very content with being with one thing for too long – even Jesus. I may be the only one, but when you pray, does your mind jump from one thought to the next? Imagine how disjointed some of our prayers might sound if they were transcribed into actual audible conversations!
So, what’s the answer? STOP IT. Withdraw and then draw near. Meditate on the beauty of our Lord and His Word. Think deeply. Jot down notes. Talk out loud. Stare in awe. Be still. Wonder. Worship. Enjoy. Abide. Rest. Devote more time to feeding on His Word than checking your feeds. Spend more time staring into His face than into your device.
Jesus has so much to say to us and that’s why many times in Scripture we are cautioned, “He who has ears, let him hear.” Translation: “You may have ears, but are you really listening?” Ears don’t work very well unless the heart and mind are focused and engaged. Let’s commit to doing something different for Jesus’ sake and swim upstream against the prevailing current of media overload.
He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple. Isaiah 50:4b NASB