An Analog Life in a Digital WorldSample

How many times have you caught yourself mindlessly scrolling through social media, vegging out in front of the TV, online shopping for things you don’t need, getting lost in a video game for hours, reading articles with information you will never use, or watching videos with no real point? 

In verse 37, the Psalmist contrasts life in God with looking at worthless things. Have you ever considered that looking at worthless things could be impacting your relationship with God? Yesterday we covered that what we are exposed to becomes what we think about. In that vein, looking at worthless things leads to worthless thoughts – and worthless thoughts most likely won’t lead us to a very meaningful life. They certainly won’t lead us closer to God. 

If we’re honest with ourselves, a lot of our screen time can be spent looking at worthless things. But none of us truly want to waste our lives in this way, right? Let’s look again at the Psalmist’s prayer for an alternative. He invites God to show him how to live a holy life, because obedience to God brings him delight. If your heart does not delight in the thought of living according to God’s commands, then it might be time to start examining what kind of worthless content is distracting you from your Creator and the life of purpose he has planned for you.

What are some things that the world ascribes worth to that God would ultimately consider worthless? What triggers cause you to turn your eyes to worthless things and how could you redirect yourself when you feel tempted to satisfy your [fill in the blank however you need to] with a screen?

Take a Next Step: Choose one worthless thing that you look at and replace it with something meaningful today.

Use this prompt to lead you into prayer:

God, help me discern the things of worth from what is worthless…