01 February 2016

Church, ADD & Airplane Mode


Living in Provo and being a YSA is a surely a unique experience. In general, the people here are more talented, prestigious and spiritual then if I were to go back to my singles branch back home. Don't get me wrong, I'm not judging, just simply observing.

As such, I would hope that we as BYU population would be more immune to the distractions of our smartphones during church, but sadly I have noticed that is not the case.

So I have ADD, so having my phone on me during church just is a no-go because I get SO easily distracted by it. So within the last six months or so, I took a challenge to keep my phone on airplane mode for all three hours of church. And wow. I like who I have become since then; more attentive to the Spirit, more eager to listen to the teacher and more able to engage in socializing with those around me.
That being said, this experience of my own has also made more aware of others' media choices during church. Instagram, Facebook, eBay, surfing the internet and texting. WHAT THE?! I think the most alarming thing to me is the possibility that these said individuals are just no longer entertained by the speakers or the teachers so they just pick up their phones and go AWOL with their spiritual learning. I'm a worrier, and I worry for them. 

I know that these last days, the days that precede the Second Coming of the Lord, are not and will not be easy to live in. And being not only physically present, but also spiritually and emotionally present when we attend church and church-related activities alike, will help us strengthen our spiritual armor. It is SO hard for me to see many wonderful, amazing people choosing their phone instead of airplane mode and spiritual enrichment. 

So I guess a good question for you readers is: how can I help these said individuals?

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