Most of us have shared in the game of endless scrolling. As someone who has done this more times than I would like to admit, it is not healthy. I never feel happy nor do I feel fulfilled when I spend hours behind my cell phone screen.
If you have also done this, know that you're not alone, but it’s not something you have to continue doing.
You have the choice to stop spending so much time behind a screen.
Rather than spending time behind a screen, you can spend it doing things you love with people you love. The way we spend our days is ultimately how we will spend our life.
If we are always behind a screen every day for a significant amount of time, we will end up spending the majority of our lives in a digital world instead of the real world. This is something that has not been known to earlier generations since they didn’t live in the technological age we find ourselves in today.
If you want to start decreasing your screen time, know that it will be helpful to your everyday life. Not only will it help you physically, it will also help you mentally. By participating in less screen time, you will open up your life to doing more things that truly bring you happiness. There will be endless advantages to putting down the phone, turning off the television, or logging off the computer.
Here are 5 benefits of less screen time:
1. More Time with God
One benefit of less screen time is to have more time with God. Spending time with God is the best way to spend our days. There is no better way to start your day or end your day than with the Lord.
By putting down the phone, you will be able to have uninterrupted time with God. Even though it's guaranteed that there will be many distractions in your day, and your devices may be calling your name, it is always better to be intentional about spending time with God.
Spending time behind a screen can be a form of escapism--a way to escape what feels overwhelming and scary in our lives. But you don’t need to run away from God or try to escape from Him. He loves you and He wants you to come to Him (Jeremiah 31:3). He doesn’t want you to always run away from Him nor does He want you to feel as though you cannot come to Him. No matter what you are going through, know that you can go to God. There is nothing too big for Him, even if you feel it is.
If you choose to continue to spend time behind a screen rather than getting involved in life, it will only dampen your life. You won’t have time for God because you are choosing a screen rather than Him. Despite the world trying to drag us to social media for a sense of validation and “likes,” it doesn’t truly give us validation or a true sense of being liked.
However, when we turn to God, we are accepted, validated, and loved.
2. More Time with Loved Ones
A second benefit of less screen time is to spend more time with loved ones. If you have ever noticed when you’re out in public or at a restaurant, most people are spending time on their phones rather than talking with loved ones.
This is a sad reality; however, it is something that needs to be addressed. It is going to be more enjoyable and memorable if you choose to be present with your loved ones rather than looking down at your device. Look up rather than looking down at your phone.
When you think about it, if you spend hours on your phone each day and hours watching television, you will gain much more time to spend with your loved ones. Instead of social media, television, or endless searches on the Internet, you can do something meaningful with your friends, family, or spouse.
I guarantee you that you will be much more happy spending time with your loved ones rather than choosing to spend time behind a screen. A life behind the screen is not the life Jesus died in order for us to have (John 10:10).
3. Time to Do the Things You Enjoy
A third benefit of less screen time is to have time to do the things you enjoy.
Recently, I have been trying to spend less time on my phone in order to have time for creativity. Creativity was something that I have lost over the years, yet day by day, I’m slowly rediscovering my love for creativity. By spending less time behind a screen, I have been able to have more time to engage in artwork, time in nature, and listening to music. All of these things make me much happier than I would be if I chose to be behind a screen with my free time.
While most of us have a desk job or we have to use our computer for work, we do have free time after we get off. We don’t have to go on social media or watch television unless we choose to. Rather, we can choose to do something different.
Nothing changes unless something changes, and the choice has to be yours. It might be easier to go out of habit and pick up your phone or turn on the television, but try to make a change.
Choose to go outside for a little bit, do something creative, start a project, learn a skill, spend time with loved ones, or just sit and spend some time with God. All of these things are much more beneficial to you instead of spending time behind a screen. Not to mention each of these things will also help you experience less anxiety and depression.
Always being behind a screen increases your risk for anxiety and depression, which can significantly impact your entire life. Take a break and take time to do things you enjoy instead.
4. Happiness Rather Than Comparison
A fourth benefit of less screen time is that you will experience more happiness rather than comparison.
Let’s face it, when we go on social media, we compare ourselves to others. This alone can put us at risk of depression, anxiety, and eating disorders. When you choose to walk away from spending time behind a screen, you will be doing much better mentally, physically, and spiritually. Even if spending time behind a screen has become a habit, you can break this habit.
You will discover that breaking this habit will help you cut down on comparisons and truly help you start being more happy with yourself and your life. This will significantly help your life and enable you to live truly for the glory of God. You cannot live the life God has for you if you are always comparing yourself to others. A key way to cut back on comparison is to put down the phone and choose to start living.
5. Hope Instead of Despair
A fifth benefit of less screen time is to have more hope instead of despair. The world, the news, and social media has a way of getting us down and causing despair to rise in our hearts. By taking time away from these things, we will quickly find ourselves more full of hope.
Rather than feeling hopeless or in a state of depression, we will start to feel more happy, hopeful, and satisfied with the life God has given us.
By spending too much time behind a screen, we begin to lose sight of all of the good things. We start focusing on all the negatives and this in turn, causes us to doubt God.
While there are bad things that happen in the world, they are not caused by God. God doesn’t cause bad things. We as sinful human beings cause bad things to happen in the world. It is good to remember this the next time we see a depressing headline—it is our fault, not God’s fault.
Choose to have hope instead of despair. You can do this by decreasing your screen time or to cut it out altogether.
Our lives are passing us by at a fast rate and before we know it, years can go by without us realizing it. We need to choose to be present and cut back on our screen time because it will help us in every area of our life. It will help us to be more present, live more enjoyable lives, and bring God the most glory.
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Tim Robberts
