In today’s age it is rare to catch adults or kids without their phone. The way teens are communicating is via text, Snapchat, insta (is that still cool?), etc...
I recently asked my daughter to Call a friend. Her face snarled up like I had asked her to run through the street naked. Her reply, “Mom, no one calls people.” So, she texted back and forth with this friend.
I sat and thought - her phone is her friend - then I thought about reasons why that phone makes a bad bad friend.
What is a friend? A friend is there for you, a friend supports, encourages, loves, is patient.
I thought about the love verse - we use it all the time for marriages a but it can equally apply to those friends we chose to be a part of our lives.
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NIV
1) Your phone is not patient - it doesn’t respect your time when you need to be resting or studying or learning. It buzzes and lights up and wants to be your #1 priority. You must hold yourself accountable to put a limit on that device.
2) Your phone is not kind - it offers you views of things that you don’t need to see. A simple “click” can allow images to enter your head in a moment and begin to alter your views. Don’t allow a piece of electronics to change you. There can be good and bad come from a phone - but know that the devil can use this little device to alter your life.
3) It creates envy - scrolling thru facebook or insta or snap chat - thoughts come in - I wish I looked like that, I wish I had those friends, I wish that was my car, and it goes on and on. Remind yourself that no one puts their worst picture on social media. This is not the real world.
4) Your phone loves to boast and be proud - that photo of friends or boyfriends or families is all you see. It is all smiles, it is a perfect world - but, that’s all your phone wants you to see. It isn’t real. It is what that person and your phone wants you to see. Don’t be drawn into that fallacy.
5) Your phone can be used to dishonor others and ....
Once it is out there - it doesn’t go away. Your phone may give you courage that you would never have if you had to say it to someone’s face. Guard your comments as if you had to say it to that person out loud. Be a friend to others on social media.
6) Your phone is easily angered. As much as you try to include others - a phone can be used as a weapon. It creates a myth. It hurts. What is your motive for a post? Is it to fill a void you have - to let people know you have cute friends? To let people know how fun you are? Your posts need to be matched against your motive and if it is out of some insecurity - save the post. It won’t fill that void and will only make the void larger.
7) Your phone keeps every record of wrongs - as much as you would like to delete it - you may even think it is gone - but once it is in cyber world - it can always come back. Tread lightly and make sure you would be proud of those posts if they came back in the future.
8) Your phone may rejoice in evil. It may be more fun to count likes on instagram and compare that to a person’s worth. Don’t be caught in that trap. Your most valuable friends may have the least likes - because their value is not based on social media - but in one on one interactions with people.
9) Your phone makes it hard to know the truth. You trust what you read and see. But, just know that you should question what you see. Test it against the truth you know.
10) Your phone does not always protect you - in fact, while there are good things your phone can do, it is much easier for you not to be protected - your location, your appearance, your friends - all make you open to bad consequences if you are not careful.
In all, your phone makes a bad friend. While I don’t see a day we can revert back to the days before they existed, I want to continually remind you of the place a phone should have in your life. It is great to make a Call! Imagine that! It is helpful when we need a quick message! But, it will not be our life. We want friends who enjoy talking! We want friends who don’t need a phone to pass the time. More than that - I want you to be that friend. Be the kind of friend who appreciates someone enough to put down your phone! There are fun things happening out there! Don’t miss the view by looking down!!!
