Cell phones….We all have them, and they can be used for good or bad. They can serve us well when we use them to read or share scripture, encourage or motivate someone, or communicate with those who need us. But they can also be a time sucker, pulling us away from what or who needs us the most. Pulling us away from God. How many moments have we missed because we were looking down and not up?

Personally, I have a love-hate relationship with my phone. I love that my family has a family chat and we chat every day. We chat so much that when we call each other we have nothing new to talk about, I love this and wouldn’t change it. But then there are the days that I can get sucked into scrolling through Facebook or Instagram and before I know it an hour has passed. And, don’t get me started on Pinterest, or half the day is gone and I have gone from loving my home to wanting to remodel everything. And in half a day you can do this on Pinterest! Our phones can leave us unsatisfied and longing for things we don’t need.

Praise Jesus, that we have a God who is never distracted. He sees all that we do. He’s always watching and cheering us on. He’s our biggest cheerleader! Nobody wants more for us than God does. God is never absent, he’s never distracted. He is always right beside us.

These past few weeks I have been very intentional with my cell phone. I’ve been silencing it when work is done. I have picked up an actual book more times since 2023 started than I have in several years combined. I have started writing more and am starting to slowly feel more refreshed than I have in a while. I have even limited social media, and I have asked God to show me when it’s time to shut down my phone. We don’t need to constantly scroll through social media and what happens is we end up comparing our lives to everyone else’s life. This can make us unhappy or dissatisfied with our lives. Hence, the remodeling of my house that doesn’t need it!

Challenge yourself this week to be more present, put your phone away, and silence it. Don’t let notifications run your life. If someone really needs you they will find you. You might be thinking, but I need my phone. I would suggest finding a window of time in the day when you can put your phone away, and shut it down. I do my best to not get on social media until after my time with God. I need to Him first in my day. And, I try to put my phone down by 6 pm every day. Being on our phones too late actually sabotages our sleep. 

I won’t lie, when I started putting my phone down I had withdrawals and still do sometimes. But over the course of a few days, it subsides and you find FREEDOM in it. 

One HUGE thing I noticed staying off Facebook for a while was I felt lighter. I was always being bombarded with ads about this diet or that diet. I found myself being sucked into them and feeling unsatisfied with myself. Since I am not scrolling I have had such freedom in that area of my life. 

If your thinking I can’t do this its ok, I feel like that’s a normal feeling. Start with a plan. Plan to shut off your phone for a specific time every day. Once you’ve mastered that start adding more time that your phone is off. Before you know it you won’t want your phone because you’ll be having fun in other ways. 

If you have a habit of being on your phone and not being present with your family watch how your relationships change! One thing I have learned watching my kids grow up is, they watch everything that we do and they repeat it. So if you are more present with your phone than with them they will most likely do the same with their families. Lead them to success, show them what family time is, and let’s get back to quality time with our families!

My last and most important tip is to PRAY! Find scripture that will keep you on track and that you can recite when you are struggling. Bring God into this, you can’t do this without him! He wants to free you up to do great things for His Kingdom, you can’t do that when you’re scrolling. We are all on the same mission, and that is to share Jesus with the nations! And, yes we can share Jesus on social media too, I am not saying to not do that but let’s look people in the eyes, talk, and love each other face to face again!

God wants this for you! He wants to be first in your life! He loves you and wants to see you loving well not looking down.

Here are some scriptures that may help you get started:

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Cor. 12:9-10

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. ⁶ The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. Romans 8:5-6

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