By: Pastor Bob Vale; Middlebury First U.M.C.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 – Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
For the average American, cell phones have become a necessary attachment to our personal daily lives. Perhaps more than we would like to admit. If I leave the house and don’t have my cell phone with me, my “smart” car immediately tells me, and I quickly stop the car, turn around and go back home to retrieve it. I use it so much every day that I would be lost without it. God forbid that I might miss something that my phone is trying to tell me about.
During the day, I receive and send out many different personal texts, emails, pictures, notifications, calendar and appointment reminders, and even a warning or two if there is a bad storm on the horizon or if there is an Amber Alert.
Because our cell phones have become our personal assistant, quick photo recorder, and pocket size computer, we live with and rely on them day in and day out. Research tells us that the average person connects to their cell phone 96 times a day, and people use their phones over 5 hours each day! Wow! Even my 83-year-old parents are using their smartphones for many uses. When traveling to third world countries in Africa or Central America, I noticed even the poorest of the poor have cell phones and are hooked to them for daily information in the same way we Americans are.
Question: What if we treated our personal Bible like our cell phones? What if we connected to God through the Bible 96 times a day or thought to speak to God five hours out of a 24-hour day? (Wow, that is something to think about.) What if, in the morning, we left our home in our car and suddenly realized we forgot our Bible? Would we slam on the brakes and turn the car around to grab our personal Bible to get us through the day? Would we feel lost without our personal Bible by our side? Would we miss our daily connections with the God of the universe? (Who loves us and is trying to speak to us often!)
What if we texted God, sent a smiley face, thumbs up, or prayerful hands emoji, or sent daily emails to the Lord through reading our Bible and prayer? What if God is trying to send pictures in our minds and visions through our reading of the scriptures? (This is called “illumination.”) What if God’s will for our lives was directing our calendar and schedule through the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our lives because we trusted Proverbs 3:5-6 to guide our paths? What if we used the bible and God’s voice to direct us daily, like we use our google maps to give us driving directions? Telling us to go this way or that way to follow God’s will.
What if we were bored or needed to fill some time, and instead of playing a game or watching a tic toc video on our cell phone, we took our Bible out and began reading the 23rd Psalm or a favorite scripture passage? What if God had warnings of bad storms about our life on the horizon and we listened to the still small voice of God, because we were reading the holy scriptures and a specific verse was sent to us directly from God to alter our direction giving us safety and Godly protection?
What if we treated our Bible like our cell phone? Would that make a difference in our lives? Would you feel lost without your personal Bible like you do when you forget your cell phone? It is certainly something to think about and perhaps make a unique difference in our Christian lives! By the way, you can place a Bible app on your phone for free and use it daily!
Grow till you Go!
Fortunately for me, I have the entire Bible on my phone. It’s wonderful to be able to read it there. However, I still prefer the book where I can open it and study it, with all my markings and scriptural references.
Great article!!! It would be wonderful if this world depended on our bibles as much as our cell phones. It would be a much better place!
This is a great thought provoking article; I think I’ll try it!
Great article, should make us think about how we spend our time, where our priorities are and where they should be. Gods word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.
The bible is so interesting. It tells God’s point of view about human behavior. It tells human history, not necessarily approving what people did but showing God’s approval when they did right. It tells the future, and so many of those predictions are coming true, that the tribulation time must be close.
AMEN!
I usually mark articles that accompany my daily reading of the Bible and generally read them on my iPhone whenever I have time throughout the day. It furthers my understanding of the Lord’s word and helps me to use that free time wisely. And when I wait in my car for my wife as she gets out of work, I bring a book of devotionals.
I have reread this because it’s so obvious and completely overlooked in our daily life. This was so profound for me, that I shared it and I plan on trying to do more of it. Thanks for a thought-provoking opinion.
My cell phone is my Bible I use Olive Tree. It’s also my worship music. I use pandora. It’s also my library of Christian audible books. I use Audible. So yes, I use it at least half the time or more with these apps. Why do you assume the average 5 hour per day does not include our Bible?
Thank you Pastor! I needed this reminder. God bless you.
Amen, Pastor Bob!
I know that I would be lost without the LIVING WORD OF GOD “By which I am born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God which LIVES and ABIDES FOREVER.
1 Peter 1:23
Yes-our phones are a necessary possession(communication, directions, reminders, etc). But we must avoid them becoming an obsession. Your inspiring & timely article served to wake me up to that danger. We all dread the dead zone or no signal experience with our phones. What an inconvenience! And then it occurred to me- what would happen if I hit a “dead zone” or “no signal” in the journey of life? If we have chosen to keep God’s LIVING & ABIDING WORD in our hearts(Deuteronomy 6:6; Psalm 40:8; 119:11), then we shall not be afraid( Psalm 56:3,4; John 14:1-3,27; 2 Timothy 1:7). Consider Memorization of Scripture, treasuring up God’s word in your ♥️ SEARCH THEM DAILY( John 5:39; Acts 17:11) as for hid treasure(Matthew 12:44-46) as the “Bread of Life(Jeremiah 15:16: John 6:33,48). Store up God’s LIVING
Word in your heart each day through out the day, and no “dead zone” or “no signal” experience “shall be able to separate us from the Love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38,39