On a recent evening, I wanted to take time to pray about some event in the news that needed attention. This is something I’ve done for many years. I believe in the power of prayer—of turning to God for answers. I have also been the recipient of the loving prayers of devoted friends and Christian Science practitioners and have always felt uplifted by this support.

I tried to select a single subject for this time of devotion. There were so many possibilities: geopolitical conflicts, climate issues, social injustices, and governments troubled by malfeasance, to name just a few. This review of humanity’s needs started to seem overwhelming, and before long I recognized that my thoughts had fallen into a pattern of doomsday scrolling. Doomscrolling, as it’s more commonly known, refers to obsessively scrolling through social media or the news, expecting and sometimes seeking out information that makes us feel sad, anxious, angry, etc. Even though I was not looking at or reading the news at that moment, a review of the events of the day seemed like a horror film playing in my mind. In fact, I was mentally scrolling instead of turning to God! 

Doomscrolling can feel justified. People feel enticed by it and can be tricked into constantly tracking negative news or social media, in the hope that they will be better informed, more able to defend a position, or even become better citizens. But this is based on a faulty premise. While it’s important to stay up to date on the news, the need is first to establish our own peace of mind by affirming what’s spiritually true, and then we will be prepared to help the world by seeing how that applies to what is being reported and discussed.