OneWord 2015

For 2015 my OneWord is “Plan” and my verse for the year is Jeremiah 29:11-13. We’re already 6 weeks into the year and planning has given me a good whooping. You know that expression, “Fail to plan, plan to fail”? Well… for the month of January I got an A+ in FAIL! My already faulty Executive Functions were further challenged by lack of sleep, fighting off an impending head cold, and shift work. After having a few 10 hour sleep sessions I remembered that a life of chaos and disorder is a sign that you’re off track with your God time.

O.K. God, you’re going back into my smartphone!

People say God can be found in nature, in the beauty of a newborn, and anything else that makes us happy, but I have realized that God can also be found in my smartphone. For whatever reason some people are not comfortable with mixing God and technology, but for me, I don’t have any ambivalence about combing the two.

I have several bibles on my e-reader which is synced to my mobile phone and my laptop. Without such technology I would have more of a challenge with being able to do daily devotions, meditations, and bible reading. Recently I have made peace with reading devotionals while riding city transit. The amount of time I spend riding on public transportation no longer feels like a complete waste of my time.  I have anywhere from a 20 minute to 1 hour one way commute. When times are extremely busy it is a relief to be able to take out my e-reader and read words inspired by God, be it straight from the bible or from someone sharing what God has revealed to them in their own life. I always prefer to have an actual book in my hand, but there is no way I want to return to the days of lugging around 3 or 4 books in my over sized handbag.

Challenged for God time?

If there is some type of modern technology that allows you to engage in quality God time, be blessed and utilize that item. In other parts of the world there are places where people’s lives are at risk if they are caught reading a bible in public; therefore, I encourage people to make use of the freedom we have. I have an emotionally draining job which comes with a 1 hour lunch break. I’ve recently begun using this time to eat alone, do some online Christian meditation and read works of biblical edification. This use of my break time has made my work days much more bearable and the time feels more like a break rather than a gathering of disgruntled employee and gossipers.

I’m a firmer believer in the idea that if something is important to you, you’ll find time for it. So if you’re still having trouble making intentional time to be with God, consider looking at how technology can help you with this struggle.

Where to find the technology:

The Apple app store: apps for such things as bible verses, daily devotions, reminders to pray

iTunes: you can purchase electronic books and audiobooks , listen to podcasts, watch TV sermons

Google Play: Similar to the Apple store, here you can purchase and download the same types of items as listed above

Kindle and Kobo: e-reading tablets allow you to download thousands of books for a lower cost than a physical book; this is also reduces the weight and bulk of having to carry multiple reading items with you

Smartphone and iPhone: All of the above are available on your phone