Tool or Tempter
“Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matt. 6:21). Today, we are seeing an epidemic of millions of people whose lives are controlled by a 3-inch by 6-inch piece of plastic, glass, and wire. Some even, unknowingly, worship it through bowing their head and their will to it, looking for life answers, meaning, and connections. Daily it consumes hours of their time and attention and causes them distress when it is lost or out of their sight. When it beckons them with its familiar tone, they will disengage with whatever or whomever they are connecting with, in order to gain the next “Dopamine rush” from the expected or unexpected message that it is conveying or relaying. It is a gateway to the world and to the loneliness of a consumed heart. If it’s not obvious by now, I’m talking about a cell phone. The question we all must ask ourselves is, “Is this phone my tool or my tempter?”
In my experience as a marriage therapist, I have seen the great destructiveness of cell phones on the marriages of so many couples. People have used it to consume hours of their time scrolling through websites, social media, emails, texts, etc. as they sit, uncommunicatively, in the same room as their spouse and family. It has been a gateway into easily accessible pornography, chat room discussions, and dating sights which are easily hidden. Through it, we connect with so many people around the world while at the same time neglecting the needs and lives of the ones residing in the home we live. We allow it to entertain us, to overwhelm us, and to be the main source of our topics for discussion. It has the power to tempt us away from the hearts of those we love and to abdicate precious hours of time that could be used to build up the Kingdom of God around us.
My suggestion? We need to see this device as a tool. A tool to accomplish a task and then be put down or away when the task is done. A tool that draws our life toward the good, the true, and the beautiful and, whenever used, should be utilized to build up and not tear down. We should have time and usage boundaries with it, as well as safeguards put on it. And, it should NEVER take precedence over the time we are utilizing to strengthen our bond of unity with God and with loved ones. That should be our greatest treasure.
ACTION STEP: This week, find more ways to make your phone a ‘tool’ rather than a ‘tempter.’