Laura R Bailey

My hand hovered over the social media apps on my phone. The Holy Spirit had undeniably convicted me—those little square icons were distracting me from the work God had called me to do in a big way.

As my finger flirted with the screen, I began negotiating with the Lord:

What if I silenced all the apps’ notifications? 

What if I set a daily timer to remind me to log off? 

What if I only logged on once a week? 

I felt sure that God wanted me to digitally detox, so why was obeying Him such a struggle? Truth accompanied by guilt pricked my heart—those apps were more than a distraction—they had become outright idols. 

It started with a five-minute check-in on my phone, which provided a way to check-out of motherhood. Those intended few minutes would turn into a couple of hours of mindless scrolling while the girls napped and ended in my falling asleep with the phone in hand.

Neither social media nor smartphones pose any inherent problem. 

Nope, this is “user error.” When my devices captivate my thoughts and minds to the point that I rely on dings, buzzes, and alerts to fill a void in my life that can only be filled by the Lord, I become like the rebellious Israelites of old. They turned from worshiping the one true God to the man-made gods around them—IDOLS. {To Continue Reading click HERE}

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