A Time For Everything…
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHvf20Y6eoM[/youtube]
I have always loved this classic song by the Byrds, inspired by Ecclesiastes 3:1-8.
Lately, I have been thinking a lot about stress, demands, busyness, self-discipline, entertainment, enjoyment of life and family and work and play, and the intersection of these things. (Yes, there are always lots of wheels turning inside my noggin. It’s like a funhouse in here – trust me!) Today I find myself especially considering the role of electronic gadgetry in the midst of this swirling mix. I got an i-Phone a couple months or so ago, primarily because there is an app for my online scheduling system, and I hoped it would improve my business efficiency. Well, it has certainly done that. My scheduling process has never been smoother for me or my clients! In addition, I have found this little gizmo to be an immensely helpful tool in many ways – from helping me navigate trips to boosting my enjoyment of amateur photography to assisting me in organizing my overall schedule to providing a handy-dandy light to navigate the toy-infested waters of my son’s room for a late night kiss on his cheek before going to bed. But the impact on my life doesn’t stop there. Consider also…
Words With Friends and the Facebook app and just how easy it is now to text like a maniac. With such powerful distractions just a slide and a tap, tap, tap away, it is easy for my attention, my mind, my spirit, and my life to get seriously out of balance. Not good. And I’m a 37 year old man with the Holy Spirit, years of walking with Christ and attempting to live in surrender to the Father’s will, and even a doctorate in studying the role of mass media in family life all to assist me in making wise choices. Imagine the impact on the fourteen year olds!
And this is not to mention the place of the Wii, XBox, Playstation, laptop computer, internet itself, i-Pad, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, etc. And I shudder to consider this new technology with its unprecedented implications.
My point is this. As parents – as adults – we need to live in view of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. You know, while we’re at it, let’s go ahead and live in view of all of chapter 3, and might as well throw in Romans 12 for good measure! All very difficult to do when I am giving my best to an electronic idol. Ouch, did I really just post that on my website?!! Our kids need us to be sober-minded, well-balanced guides to show them how to live rightly and humbly before God. How are we doing?
1 Comment
StacyJ · September 20, 2011 at 4:53 pm
Great post…I too have struggled with the same issue. I have been especially “addicted” to a certain blog site the past year or more and I increasingly sense the Holy Spirit nudging me, questioning me why do I love the words & pictures of this food/family/photo blogger more than His. I will even go so far as to admit that I am very close to “idolizing” this particular person…she has a life that I envy, one that I dreamed of since I was a child, and she has inspired me in some good ways, however, I have not been able to tap-dance around the Holy Spirit and by His mercy & grace, I will get my priorities straight.