I love my cellphone. I love the safe feeling I have knowing
I have a way to call for help if needed when traveling. I love that I can send
and receive texts when I need to talk to someone but am somewhere where I can’t
talk out loud. However, I do not live for my cellphone. It is not the breath of
me.
I was on facebook the other day and someone posted a picture
of their young daughter with her cellphone at the dinner table. The post had a
picture of the girl looking at her phone while in a restaurant and the post said
“she’s texting me!” The responding comments were many LOL’s.
My brother is always commenting on how he hates that his
kids are always on their cellphones. Yet, he is always on his. It’s so
discouraging to go to dinner with them and see my brother constantly checking
or clicking away on his cellphone.
Personally, THIS infuriates me. It’s not the fact a cute
picture was posted with her on her phone, it’s the fact that as a society we
have lost touch of what personal communication really means anymore. I’m sure
this blog is going to ruffle some feathers somewhere and this is strictly my
opinion.
We, as parents, wonder why we can’t connect with our
teenagers or understand the lingo they speak. We wonder why they’re failing in
school or why they’re in trouble in school. We wonder why kids are becoming
more introverted every day. Being a parent of a teen is hard enough as it is.
My son, now 25, was not permitted to have a cellphone until
he was 16 years old. Yes, I said 16. He was made fun of by his friends because
he didn’t have a cell phone, but I didn’t care what his friends thought. It
wasn’t that I didn’t think he was responsible enough because he was a very
responsible teenager. It was simply because I wanted him to learn the basics of
how to communicate with people on a personal level. I wanted him to grasp the
fact that talking face to face is far more important than clicking keys to talk
through text.
I’m not saying my choices as a parent were the best
choices….heck I was a drunk who took her anger out on her son when he was
little. Praise God that child forgave me for those mistakes!
But, what I am saying is, if we teach our children to put
the phone down and to live intentionally with people and around people our
children will grow and understand how to communicate face to face. They will
learn how to express their feelings and emotions, but most importantly they
will learn how to talk and relate on a personal level.
I want those around me to know that they are important. That
the short amount of time I might have with them at dinner is far more important
than me checking my phone to see the status of my friends on facebook who I
don’t even really know or haven’t talked to or seen in 3, 5, 10 or 30 years.
What really matters in my life? What or who is really
important? My family, statuses on facebook or the next level of candy crush? I
want there to be no doubt to the people who choose to spend time with me,
whether it’s a couple hours or a quick lunch, that THEY MATTER MOST. I want to live
with intent and I want to talk and laugh and hear and know what they are truly
saying. And I want the same in return.
I wonder, how many people have dropped their cell in the
toilet? Our cellphones have become idols. There…I said it. We can’t even go to
the bathroom without them. I’m guilty. I’ve sent many texts while sitting on the
potty. (Not that you wanted that visual!) But, lets be real here.
As a society we have grown to grab that little electronic idol all the time. What would happen if we put it down and focus on our
children, focus on our family, focus on God? What would happen if we re-learned how to communicate with our
children, with our family and with God? What if we put God first, family second
and our cellphones last?
What if…
If we would reach for God the way
we reach for our cell phones.
We would hug our children as tight
as we hug our cellphones.
We prayed instead of played candy crush.
We ate dinner without bringing our cellphone
to the table and had real face to face interaction.
Just…what if?
I think it's time to drop this stronghold just like it's carriers use to drop our calls.
Just sayin'
Matthew 6:21
For where you treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Matthew 6:33
But seek first His kingdom and righteousness, and all things
will be given to you as well.
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| I found this picture on the internet and it fit perfectly to my blog topic. I have not altered it in any way. Credit is given to who said the quote as well as who used this for their business. I do not know either the person who quoted or the business and do not promote this business. I just used the picture as it was. |
Blessings,
Bo
02/04/2015
