Smartphones Have Changed the World

Smartphones arrived in 2007—that’s when the first iPhone came out.  Before that time, the internet age had already been in high gear for a couple decades, but when so much digital power went mobile on a pocket-sized device, impacts of various kinds accel­er­ated and proliferated.  The smartphone has changed the world.

And it has changed us.  No longer do we need to wait until we get to our desk to check email or social media:  we can go online anytime, anywhere.  And this immediacy impacts how we think:  we can learn about traffic and weather now; our impulse to post a snarky comment can be acted on now.  Waiting is passé.

Instantaneous info access means less need for patience, which in turn diminishes our discernment about online conduct.  Plus, this ability tempts us to multi-task and let our devices intrude into relational spaces previously focused on the people around us.  We become flitty, distracted figures who are never quite fully present in a given place.  And we come to assume that nearly all problems can be solved by a quick check with Siri or a Google search.  All of which makes us less thoughtful, patient, humble, and wise.

Now I know what some are thinking:  there are benefits too. I agree; the smartphone is a “mixed blessing.”  There are gains and losses.  It’s helpful to avoid a traffic jam by using Waze; it’s handy to order a ride with a tap on the Uber app.  And so on.

The challenge for all followers of Jesus is to be good stewards of the gains and while exercising wise restraint when it comes to the losses.  We need discernment!  Remember:  faith in Christ calls for stillness and peace:   “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened (by endlessly checking Dow Jones, YouTube, and Twitter), and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).  “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27).  Don’t let your phone get between you and Jesus!