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Click here for concepts to merge media and mentoring together in parenting/caregiving (Pt. 1).
The world would like us to believe that our kids and grandkids can “reverse mentor” us when it comes to technology. It seems to come so easy to them because it has been around most of their lives, yet it still feels new to us. Stepping into our roles as mentors in this area can seem daunting, but we must guard the role and invest the time and effort to become proficient with technology.
We must keep the reason clearly before us; it is not to be the best at games or to know the most about devices. Reasons to learn technological proficiency are: to use it as a tool to glorify God, to use it to draw others to Him, and to shepherd those He has allowed to be in our care.
The first person we must mentor is ourselves.
We must humble ourselves and submit to His Shepherding even our technological devices. When keeping technology as a tool, we must rule it instead of allowing it to rule us. We must live humbly but authentically in the authority He has given us. This requires routine examination, stewardship, and maintenance. We must filter stimuli that dehydrate our relationships (along with our souls, hearts, and minds) and increase practices that strengthen and restore those. We must find more ways to utilize our technology tools to remind us to reconnect with God and the people in our lives. Then we can encourage others in our life to imitate the mind of Christ in using technology, because our One True Mentor is the best mentor -even in regard to tech. Here are some examples of great tools and practices to download to our phones and our routines.
Remain In Him; let Him Remain in you (based on John 15)
Tools: Bible App and One Minute Pause App
Having the Bible App in a prominent place on our devices ensures that when we are waiting somewhere or have some extra moments, it is the first thing we see! We can trade scrolling social media for scrolling our morning reading in different versions or scrolling through our highlighted verses” to review and refresh. Think about how much more pleasant the world would be if lines were full of people scrolling highlighted apps that calm rather than scrolling through news that frightens or enrages.
Using regular alarms and the timers in the One Minute Pause app, we can intentionally draw our attention to Him rhythmically throughout the day. I prefer to mute John Eldredge (One Minute Pause app) and speak the prayers myself. Occasionally I find that it is hard for me to authentically say the words and in those times, I ask for His help to get me there. (Mark 9:24)
Steward/ Shepherd/ Overseer (1 Peter 2:25)
Imitate Christ as an overseer role in regard to the phone.
First, let’s take a minute to inventory the apps on our phones. How many are there total?
Prune! Explore the apps that have not been used in the last 3 months. Why did you download them at first? Why did you cease using them? How many can you delete or move to a more prominent place on the phone so they are not forgotten? Tool: Delete icon
Plant! Count how many apps turn the focus to God and His Word? What percentage of the day’s activities does this? With several apps, you can build a rhythm of your phone redirecting your gaze to Him. Tool: New City Catechism, One Minute Pause, Bible games or trivia
Oversee! How many apps help steward, shepherd and organize the people and responsibilities He has given us authority over? Keep apps used for Spiritual health on the first “page” of the Home screen (i.e. Bible app, One Minute Pause, Bible, Camera, Marriage Apps, etc.) Move ones that aid in weekly efficiency to the second page (i.e. Calendar, Calculator, Weather, School grade apps, etc.). Use “folders” to group the entertaining ones that pull you away from other responsibilities and put them on a third page requiring more effort to get to them. Tool: Folders on phone, Calendar, Remind App, Notes, etc.
Enjoy! How many are for laughter or play? If you don’t have any that encourage play, why not? Do you have any joke apps or other apps to cue you to laugh? Step lightly with these… some can have things the world finds amusing but are not uplifting. Our God has a wonderful sense of humor and Christ regularly had fellowship with others involving joy. Tool: Just for Fun app; PLAtime on instagram; funny animals on instagram)
The Lamp of our Body - Eyes (Matthew 6:22-23)
Tools: Bible Lens App, First 5 App, Strongs Concordance App, Pauldavidtripp on Instagram
How many apps or the “follows” we choose turn our focus to the negative aspects of the world? How many turn us to the light? Philiappians 4:8 gives a guide on what to think about. Using the folders part of our phones to organize apps in categories like “True, Pure, Honorable, Lovely, Praiseworthy” can help automatically filter some apps when we are thinking of downloading them. Also ones that equip us in “ Marriage, Parenting, Relational, Laughter” etc. can be organized in folders labeled with those titles.
How does social media affect our gaze? Social media is not evil - how we use it can be. Do these platforms and those we follow direct our eyes and ears to content that is pure, honorable, lovely, and praiseworthy? It depends a great deal on what we search and what we give a thumbs up!
How much time do we spend reading or listening to news reports that often cannot be proven to be true? I wish that news consisted of more focus on the “praiseworthy”; what can we find to post and share to show news sources that praiseworthy content is what we prefer?
May He show us how to redeem technology for His Glory and fuel us to PLA well!