Lord, Forgive us for checking our Phones More Than Our Hearts...
Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139:23-24)
Scroll, Like, Repeat: You ARE Being Discipled by a Rectangle
“Digital discipleship is happening. It’s just being led by an algorithm, not the Church.”
Let’s be honest.
Most of us don’t need another devotional—we need an intervention.
Because somewhere between “just checking one thing” and “how is it midnight?” we’ve quietly handed our formation over to a glowing rectangle that knows our habits better than our own families do.
Congratulations.
You’ve been discipled.
Welcome to the Church of the Algorithm
The algorithm is a faithful shepherd.
It never sleeps.
It always knows what you want.
And it gently leads you beside still waters… of outrage, insecurity, comparison, and hot takes.
It catechizes daily:
This is what you should be angry about.
This is who you should fear.
This is what success looks like.
This is why everyone else is wrong.
All without asking you to repent, forgive, or love your neighbor.
The Bible says one person shapes as another as “Iron sharpens iron.”
Algorithms sharpen anxiety.
This is not conjecture, we know the more time you spend on social media the more likely depression and anxiety go up, regardless of age.
Adult Depression and Social Media Use (JAMA Network Open)
A large observational study published in JAMA Network Open found that self-reported social media use was associated with worsening depressive symptoms among adults.
Scoping Review: Depression and Social Media Use (Adolescents)
A scoping review analyzing 43 papers found a connection between social media use and depressive symptoms, as well as secondary outcomes like anxiety, poor sleep, and low self-esteem.
The Spiritual Discipline of Doomscrolling
Let’s call scrolling what it really is:
A liturgy.
You wake up and check your phone before you check your soul.
You let strangers shape your worldview before Scripture has a word.
You spend more time with influencers than with people who actually know your name.
And then we wonder why we’re spiritually tired, emotionally reactive, and relationally distant.
We say we don’t have time for prayer, but somehow we have time to watch strangers argue for 45 minutes.
The Algorithm Doesn’t Love You (But It Pretends To)
The algorithm:
Knows your preferences
Studies your behavior
Exploits your emotions
Profits from your attention
What it does not do:
Pray for you
Tell you the truth when you’re wrong
Call you to holiness
Sit with you in grief
It affirms you endlessly but transforms you never.
Jesus loves you and brings you healing.
Algorithms affirm to keep you scrolling.
“Woe to You, O Scroll-Fatigued People” (A Modern Paraphrase)
Woe to you who refresh but never reflect.
Woe to you who consume content but avoid community.
Woe to you who know everyone’s opinion but not your neighbor’s pain.
You are informed—but not formed.
Entertained—but not transformed.
Connected—but profoundly alone.
And somehow surprised.
The Radical, Countercultural Alternative: Show Up Somewhere
Here’s the rebellion no algorithm can handle:
Eat dinner with your family.
Look people in the eyes.
Show up to worship even when it’s inconvenient.
Open the Bible with other flawed humans.
Commit to a local church where people know when you’re missing.
Yes, it’s slower.
Yes, it’s messier.
Yes, it requires actual effort.
But formation always does.
The algorithm wants your attention. The Church wants your presence.
Why God Chose Community (and Not a Feed)
God didn’t say, “Scroll together.”
He said, “Love one another.”
He didn’t form disciples through recommendations.
He formed them through relationships.
Scripture says iron sharpens iron—not iron sharpens iron via anonymous comments from people with anime avatars.
You cannot practice patience, forgiveness, generosity, or love in isolation.
You cannot obey the “one another” commands alone.
And you cannot be fully formed without being fully known.
You can mute people online. You can’t mute the Spirit in community.
A Final, Loving Warning
If you don’t choose what shapes you, something else will.
And if you don’t submit to formation through God’s Word and God’s people,
you will be shaped—very efficiently—by whatever keeps you scrolling longest.
So maybe tonight:
Put the phone down.
Pick the Bible up.
Sit with your people.
Commit to a church family.
Not because social media is evil.
But because Jesus is better.
Closing Prayer (With Just a Little Bite)
Lord, forgive us for checking our phones more often than our hearts.
Forgive us for letting algorithms disciple us while Your Church waits patiently.
Teach us to love real people, in real places, with real commitment.
Form us through Your Word, sharpen us through Your people,
and deliver us from the tyranny of the endless scroll.
Amen.
The Best Is Yet To Come,
Rev. John Roberts
This is an excellent reminder to keep things in perspective. Using/looking at your phone is fine, but it is not the center of life. One’s relationships are, and the foremost one is one’s relationship with God. Work to keep the emphasis where it should be!