Refresh: Connecting to Christ Through Unplugging

In her “Spiritual Disciplines Handbook,” Adele Calhoun describes dozens of spiritual disciplines.  This blog series takes up some of the most uncommon disciplines from Calhoun’s list.  Perhaps these can breath freshness and newness into your spiritual life.  Below, I’ve utilized some of Calhoun’s ideas as well as some of my own.

#1 Unplugging

Unplugging is an intentional spiritual practice which “calls us to leave the virtual world of technology (computers, e-mail, Blackberries, cell phones, PDAs, iPods, etc.) in order to become present to God and others.”  If you long to “be fully present to and uninterrupted in your interactions with God and others,” then this discipline is for you.

The problem which this spiritual habit addresses can be easily seen in our own experiences. 

• For example, have you ever gone on vacation and checked your email just once or taken just one call from the office and it resulted in hours of work while still on vacation?  Have you ever returned from vacation only to spend the next week digging out of an electronic Inbox or trying to answer dozens of voice mails?  We are often tethered to and enslaved by these technologies. 
• In addition, our cell phones and smart phones and PDA’s have made us too available to too many people at too many times.  The more available we become to more people at more times, the less present we are with any one person (or God) at any one time. 
• Further, consider that the average person in America spends about 4 hours/day on the Internet and about 8 hours/day watching TV and/or listening to the radio.  We’ve become so consumed by these media that we hardly even have time for uninterrupted dialogues with God or others. 
• Finally, DWD illustrates our inability to be fully present.  Driving While Distracted has become a major problem for drivers today.  Drivers using cell phones are 4 times more likely to get into serious crashes.  Driving While Distracted is a factor in 1 of 4 police-reported crashes.  And driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37%.  Driving While Distracted graphically illustrates what happens when we are not fully present.  In truth, however, many of us are Living While Distracted, never fully present to God or to others.

It’s a problem hinted at in Scripture:

• Ecc. 2:22-23: 22What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart with which he toils beneath the sun? 23For all his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation. Even in the night his heart does not rest. This also is vanity. (ESV).  One of vanities of life is that is possible to be permanently distracted by toil and labor, even into the night.  It is possible even for our “heart” to be completely caught up in work of the day.  The result is that we are not truly present to God/others.
• Ps. 127:1-5: 1Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.  Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.  2It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.  3Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.  4Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth.  5Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them!  He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. (ESV).  God desires to give us the blessing of sleep.  But the great human tendency is to rise early and go late to rest with our work, our agenda, our stuff.  The result is that we are not truly present to God/others.
• Deut. 8:10-11: Make sure you don’t forget God, your God, by not keeping his commandments, his rules and regulations that I command you today. Make sure that when you eat and are satisfied, build pleasant houses and settle in, see your herds and flocks flourish and more and more money come in, watch your standard of living going up and up—make sure you don’t become so full of yourself and your things that you forget God… (The Message)  It is possible to get so caught up with the fullness of the good life that we forget God.  It is possible to get so caught up caring for the abundant life that God has given that we forget God.
• Matt. 6:22-34: 22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, 23 but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!  24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.  25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. (ESV).  Jesus warns that whatever we focus on (our “eye”) will impact all of life (our “body.”)  It is not possible to focus on more than one thing.  We either focus on God or on money.  We either focus on the Kingdom or on all the stuff that worries us.  It’s not really possible to be fully present to God (or to others) when we are focused on the other things of life.
•  Heb. 12:1-2: 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. (NLT)  The writer warns that we can be easily distracted.  Sin, of course, can distract us.  But so can other things–even good things.  Thus the writer urges us to have a single-minded focus on Jesus.

Unplugging is a practice that recognizes that much of the media and technology in our life can become a distraction.  This habit forces us away from those distractions for a time so that we can be more present to God and to others. 

 What would this look like?  Here are some practical ways to unplug:

1. Keep track of amount of time you spend on the computer or talking on phone each day.  Compare this with amount of time you spend in uninterrupted time with friends/family/God each day.
2. Unplug electronic devices that interrupt relationships.
3. Refrain from the use of email.
4. Abstain from video recreation.
5. Devote time and attention to others without interruption.
6. Communicate face to face rather than virtually.
7. Refuse to put sensitive human interaction into electronic form.
8. Don’t check email on weekends.
9. Have a no-email work day.
10. Turn off your computer and cell phone during your prayer time.
11. “Fast” from your favorite form of media regularly.