Oh, These Smartphones

Smartphones have brought the most powerful and irreversible psychological and social shift to society's life.

The era of "happy childhood" in which many adults were fortunate to live has ended forever in civilized countries. And to return to that time, one can visit distant African tribes where people still live without money and have no access to the internet.

In 2007, the first smartphone from Apple was released. It was very expensive and inaccessible to families with limited budgets. But already in 2010, an Android gadget entered the world arena, which conquered everyone with its low price and immediately gained popularity among young people.

2012 is considered a turning point in the formation of the new smartphone generation, when a large part of teenagers living in Western society acquired personal smartphones and offered the world a new internet culture. It was noticed that it was from this time that teenagers began to communicate less in person, their thinking and perception of reality began to change, and mental illnesses fell upon the world like a tsunami. New fears and anxieties appeared if a teenager was outside the internet access zone, and if they lost their phone, it became a catastrophe. Social networks became the measure of personal self-esteem, a cult of appearance and one's significance in the circle of subscribers, which generated dissatisfaction with oneself and one's appearance in many. Physical activity decreased and problems with posture, obesity and vision deterioration increased. And all this became the beginning of new social diseases of body, spirit and soul.

Smartphones and the internet became a source of obtaining quick pleasure, producing hormonal addiction in teenagers.

And these were still flowers. Now artificial intelligence has entered the world arena - though still an incomprehensible invention, but in many qualities it can already be seen how it replaces living people and exceeds their intellectual abilities by thousands of times.

The smartphone era covered not only teenagers who have already become adults by our time, but also spread to all generations and layers of society. This has already become that inevitability from which there is nowhere to escape, but something needs to be done about it. And as comical as it sounds, the only place where a person is completely freed from such dependencies and does not defend their rights to use a smartphone is prison with solitary confinement, where there appears much time for reflection, reading and prayer. But is it worth bringing oneself to this?

The most interesting thing is that if you voice all the problems that smartphones and the internet bring, and offer people to give up these benefits for the sake of true spiritual values, society will choose the former.

Working in the construction field, I once heard from one customer the thought that for people now it is important not to have conveniences in housing, but to have internet. If this is not available, then it will be difficult to find a buyer for this real estate. I don't want to talk about this, but for many people the smartphone has become an idol from which they cannot simply take and refuse. Their whole life and the whole meaning of this life is there, and this is already serious.

One can tell many more terrible stories about these means of communication, but our goal is not to frighten you, but to offer an alternative and instill hope.

There is a difference between when your children are now small and still cannot have their own personal smartphone by age, and those who already have teenagers in the family who have their smartphones and live in them. The approach to these two categories of children differs, and therefore wisdom is needed, because prevention is always easier than changing something.

In the ideal case, it is best not to buy a teenager a smartphone until 16-18 years old, explaining this by the fact that there are more valuable things that have special weight and significance in our family. This should not be an absolute prohibition, but a wise explanation of all the dangers that possessing this gadget brings.

Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms that seduce us from all sides. And when a teenager understands all the danger and logic of parental prohibitions, they see in this a manifestation of their love and calmly endures such restrictions. The power of persuasion of parental words has not been canceled, but these should be wise words, filled with the Holy Spirit and backed by personal example. For convenience and mobile communication, you can give the teenager a button phone. Parents' victory in this matter is worth fighting for and doing everything possible to protect children from this influence as long as possible.

You can also come up with an alternative to the generally accepted pastime on the internet.

If your children are used to living in your love and have trusting relationships with you, then it will be much easier for you to explain everything to them and present these questions in the right light.

If your teenager already has a phone and is dependent on this gadget, then the first rule - do not dare to take this device away. Such an approach will not solve anything, but will only aggravate the situation. Special wisdom and power from above is needed here to act based on your personal situation. Love, friendship, respect, kind words, pleasant communication have not been canceled. The teenager continues to need this.

A young person who has found themselves on the internet is not very eager to engage in ordinary activities. But parents need to involve them in those processes where the presence of a smartphone is not necessary. Hand work, performing socially useful service, trips to nature, hikes, picnics, organizing youth clubs or unions among your friends can become a good alternative in which one can live without the internet.

Also, wisdom can consist in not prohibiting the use of a smartphone, but teaching to use this gadget for preaching the Gospel and for performing some special works, ministries or services that will benefit other people.

You can also show ways and teach a teenager to earn money through the internet, but so that it is legal and does not harm the soul.

Although with smartphone addiction the dopamine system brings satisfaction in a quick way, there are eternal values that no smartphone can replace.

Our world has always been directed against us, so we parents need to become stronger than this world and offer what the world cannot give the child. Become for the teenager someone who will be more interesting to them than their smartphone. This will not happen in an instant, but if you fight for this and strive for this, you will definitely succeed. The problem is not that children spend a lot of time on the internet, but that parents spend little time with children. The enemy uses this feature to occupy parental time with their temptations. If you only pray and do nothing in personal relationships with children, then the probability that something will change will be very small.

It may seem to you that the smartphone has defeated you, but always remember that Jesus has already won in this war and you can and should enter into this victory and defeat the enemy of souls with the power of God's love.

1. Please read 1 Cor. 6:12; 9:27; 15:33; Rom. 6:16; Gal. 5:1; Eccl. 3:1; Prov. 4:23; 22:6; 27:17; Eph. 6:4; Ps. 89(90):12; 1 John 5:21, in light of this lesson.

2. What other verses from the Bible came to your mind?

3. What was revealed to you in this chapter?

4. What role does the smartphone play in your family's life and in your life, reader - helper or master?

5. Are you ready to honestly admit that you yourself are dependent on your device and are not setting the best example for children?

6. Do you see in the smartphone a potential idol that can replace God in your child's heart?

7. Do you understand that the fight for your child's attention is a spiritual battle, not just a generational conflict?

8. What can you replace the time your teenager spends on the internet with?

9. What alternative activities can you offer that will be more interesting than the virtual world?

10. How to create an atmosphere in the house where live communication is valued more than communication in social networks?

11. What spiritual foundations need to be laid in a child so they can resist the temptations of the technological world?

12. How to teach a teenager to use technology for serving God and people, and not just for entertainment?

13. What to do if attempts to limit smartphone use lead to conflicts and protests?

14. Do you believe that God will give you wisdom and strength to solve this task?