How can I stop scrolling?
A major news event was unfolding in the United States, where I live. Unsure about how to think about it, I decided to log on to social media to see what other people were saying. The people I followed on this app often look at the world the way I do; I thought that seeing their takes on this issue would help me understand it better.
Huh. That was a startling thought. Rely on social media to tell me what to think? Actually, I had been spending more time than I wanted to on my phone—not just reading people’s perspectives on the news but also mindlessly scrolling during work breaks or at the end of a long day.
This was the opposite of one of my favorite things I’d learned in Christian Science Sunday School, which was to think deeply about the concepts I was learning. Teachers encouraged my Sunday School classmates and me to ask questions and discuss anything we were wondering about or struggling with. And I’d also learned that the ideas I needed didn’t come just from my conversations with others but also from praying and seeking answers from God.
I had been spending more time than I wanted to on my phone.
Reading the Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy had taught me that we are made by God, so our thoughts, too, actually originate in God. Because God is good, these thoughts lead us in good and productive ways and provide healing answers when we need them. I realized that if I started relying on social media for my opinions, I was, in essence, ignoring my God-given ability to reason through and pray about issues in a way that brings constructive solutions.
Of course, it’s not wrong to hear other people’s perspectives on a topic. But I realized that regularly reading online posts left me frustrated rather than better informed. This reminded me of a Bible verse I love, which reads, in part, “Whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; . . . think on these things” (Philippians 4:8). It was true that when I focused on lovely and good things, I felt happier and better, because they led me to solutions rather than keeping me in a loop of anger and helplessness. It was also true that a lot of what I read on social media was pretty unlovely. But it was still tough for me to stop the scrolling.
As I prayed to God to help me break the social media habit, a surprising image came to mind. I pictured a sunset, rich in many colors, covering the western sky. A person standing under the sunset fixated on a speck of dirt on the ground, rather than looking up at the glory all around. I realized that this was like me as I scrolled. By engaging with whatever human drama was making people angry or afraid in that moment, I was missing the beauty of God’s kingdom all around me. I realized I didn’t need to keep trying to stop a bad habit. Instead, as I better understood and paid attention to how beautiful, vibrant, and good life is when seen from God’s perspective, I would stop gravitating toward things that pointed in the opposite direction.
These realizations helped me cut way down on the time I spent scrolling. While I still sometimes feel pulled to pick up my phone more than I need to, I have never again been tempted to rely on social media for what to think.
Even when a troubling series of events unfolded in my community, I was able to focus on praying rather than scrolling.
In fact, even when a troubling series of events occurred in my community, I was able to focus on praying rather than scrolling. A question came to me very clearly during this time: Does power belong to people or to God? During a crisis, especially, it can feel like flawed humans have the power. Yet the Bible makes clear that God is the source of all real power. The Lord’s Prayer tells us that God has the power and the glory—forever! Through my prayers, I could see that God’s all-power had to be made manifest in my community.
These ideas helped me feel peaceful about the situation, which was soon resolved. Focusing on prayer rather than on social media also led me to take concrete steps to help those in need in my community.
I’m grateful to be seeing more clearly how beautiful, good, and meaningful life in God is—outside of my phone.
