Meditation:
The ABCs of Digital Discipline
Dr. Joel Albert
Over twenty centuries ago, a great man of God wrote his final letter to a young preacher whom he considered his son in the Lord, just before he finished his course of life in the world. These words of Apostle Paul to Timothy were filled with doctrinal truths and practical lessons that would apply to believers like us even today.
In 2 Timothy 2:22, he says, “Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” This is a verse that I consider to be one of the foundational principles every believer should live by. Little did Paul know that, twenty centuries later there would be an entire virtual world where believers would struggle to maintain a stronger standard of spiritual living. But God in his foreknowledge inspired him to pen those words that hold true with a greater significance even today.
The verse we just read can be divided into two parts. One starts with the word flee and the other one with follow. Keeping those two words in mind, let us delve a bit deeper into our habits about technology and gadgets in general by looking at the ABCs of Digital Discipline. Let us look at the PROBLEMS followed by the PATH toward digital discipline.
Flee - THE PROBLEMS:
a. Attention deficit
You see the most common form of videos we interact with are short-form videos which we know as reels, shorts, stories etc. depending on where you’re watching it. That, coupled with ‘infinite scrolling’ or what I like to call ‘the bottomless pit of technology’ has hooked adults and teens, seniors and children alike. And the result is individuals are in a constant state of distraction.
While they are people trying to use those platforms for good, nevertheless just imagine if our brains are rewired to this state of constant distraction, how difficult it would be to meditate for extended periods, or listen to sermons and messages that go on for 30 minutes to an hour!
b. Behavioral Variations
Have you realized that extended screen time has been linked to temper tantrums? The more time we spend online, we are bound to get cranky and angry once it is off or if we are not able to get a screen when we want to. There are many neurological reasons but one of the main ones is the use of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps us to experience pleasure and satisfaction. Dopamine is meant to be secreted a few times a day so that it is replenished and available when needed. Every time we watch a video or play games online, it gives a dopamine rush and this continuous secretion of dopamine results in its depletion which then makes us feel tired, sleepless and angry.
Only the Lord, through His word, can give us the peace ‘that surpasses all understanding’. No comedy videos, serials or movies will be able to do that. They will give you a rush of pleasure and energy but will make you feel more depressed the moment you shut them off.
The word of God is not like that! When we receive peace and comfort from meditating, studying and hearing the word transcends circumstances, problems and worries.
c. Companionship Confused
One of the greatest fallacies about social media is that it can help us to be in touch with people we know and like. Just in the past decade, having dealt with many youngsters and adults alike, one common theme was seen in our experience in the ministry. If I had to make a statistical analysis of the pros and cons of social media using this cohort of people I’ve interacted with for moral issues, the cons outweigh the pros by an astounding margin. From a 15-year-old to a 50-year-old believer known to us, chatting online has led them to fall into sin and go away from the Lord.
Whether it is Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat or even WhatsApp, the number of people who have slipped into sin because of these apps is reason enough for us to stay out of it.
We recently challenged the youths in our local assembly to delete all social media and spend more time with like-minded believers and the response from a good number of youths was very positive. It may not be the only step needed to stay away from immorality but it’s a significant step in the right direction.
Yes, we would be in the minority, but let me assure you, if you don’t look toward Sodom, you will not be attracted to it like Lot. Instead, you’ll be able to take the difficult uphill journey to Hebron (fellowship, communion) and the plains of Mamre like Abraham, where the Lord can come and talk to you just like he did with Abraham, but in a spiritual sense of course.
So what is the solution?
Can we stay away from technology and gadgets in this day and age? It would be wishful thinking but I’m sure there is a strong middle ground. You see, we are reading this e-magazine on a screen! That means there are certain steps that we can follow, what we would call the PATH OF DIGITAL DISCIPLINE
Follow- THE PATH OF DIGITAL DISCIPLINE
i. Accountability
While counseling youngsters and young couples alike, there is a clause of accountability that we speak about. There are biometric locks to most of our phones like fingerprint scanners and face ID or even a PIN. We strongly urge youngsters that until they get married, their parents should have access to their phones and the day they get married; their spouse should continue to have that access.
That keeps us accountable, not to fall into sin. There are various other ways to have accountability through which we ensure that there are multiple layers of protection to keep us away from accessing anything wrong.
ii. Benefits
The World Wide Web is a world in itself. And it has very good resources for us to use. One excellent use case scenario for me has been the availability of Strong’s Concordance; see the original Hebrew and Greek words and their meanings and much more at the touch of our fingertips. Earlier it would require searching the big book manually to study and understand the original biblical words. The amount of resources, versions of scripture, out-of-print books etc. are enough for a student of the word to be content and happy.
However, it is to be noted that we should still take care while we are on the internet because we’re just one click away from an entire world of filth right on the same browser.
iii. Cutting off
I would open a can of worms if I said that cell phones and tablets have no place inside an assembly hall or on the pulpit. Many of us use our devices to access multiple versions of scripture, write notes and even to access notes that we have typed or written. Every single youth conference we go to have this question - can we use our devices instead of a Bible?
All I would say out of my own experience with myself and others is to be careful. I was recently in a meeting where a youngster next to me was using a tablet to access two versions and I thought to myself, “Oh, look at a youngster using a device wisely”. Just a minute later, he received a text message, and for the rest of the message, his ‘Bible’ tab was in the background and the WhatsApp conversation took precedence over the voice of the most high God coming to him. I’m just speaking of the latest instance, there are many, and you would agree.
I believe that the ‘real’ scripture instead of the ‘virtual’ should always be with us. Yes, we may use the device to access our notes on the pulpit but a good yardstick would be to have a ‘real’ bible in our hand, anything else being secondary to it, to be used with utmost caution and reverence to the Lord and to His word.
Also, I would go to the extent of urging you, my dear brethren, to unsubscribe from OTT platforms. We say believers are not supposed to go to movie theatres, but what about the ones we have in our hands?
TWO WINDOWS
I would conclude by saying, there are two windows in our lives. Every screen is a window to the world. It may show you beautiful things but it’s all just a mirage. But then we have the Bible, the window to eternity. It points us to our existence outside the confines of space and time, in the glorious presence of God!
A reality is more real than what we can imagine. Which window are we looking at? May the Lord help us to learn the true value of the Word and stay away from the ways of the world. It requires discipline, but that discipline would make us true disciples of the Lord.
