Colleen Orchanian

I love playing games on my tablet or phone. It's a way to pass the time while waiting or watching TV. But I am easily drawn into the game for hours rather than a few minutes. Then I feel rotten because I wasted so much time, time that could have been used for something more valuable. Have you ever felt this way?

There is a double spiritual attack here. The first is to draw us into diversionary activities, especially those that have little or no value, and the second is to stir up discouraging guilt about time spent in those activities.

There are three major types of diversions in our current culture: social media, entertainment, and current events. Each of these diversions can have value; none is evil in and of itself. But each can be the means of a spiritual attack that pulls us away from God and harms our relationships.

Social Media:

This includes things like Facebook and Instagram, where we post about our lives for others to see. I am from a big family—11 kids—and we use Facebook to share what's happening in our lives. This is an easy way to keep in touch. In that way, it is good.

But social media can be used against us. Comparing myself to others can damage my self-image. I look at the perfect life others post online and wonder why I don't have it. It can cause me to present a less-than-authentic picture of myself. I want others to think of me a certain way, so that's what I put out there. The devil wants me to present a lie about who I am because the real me isn't good enough.

It can feed my need to seek the approval of the world. I know a teenager who writes her posts by considering what will get the most likes. When we don't get as many as we had hoped for, we wonder why people don't like us. In our insecurity, we seek validation from the world, but not from God.

It makes it easier to remove our filters, making us more blunt and sometimes rude in our posts—in a way we would not when speaking to someone live. I see this most often when people post their positions about politics or religion. The message often is: If you disagree with me, you're an idiot, a bad Christian, or a heartless jerk. We become judgmental and demonize those who don't think like us. This comes from the devil, not God.

Many people give up social media for Lent. Why? Some want to spend less time scrolling. Others want more peace. Still others may desire to curb their curiosity about who's doing what. When we decide to give it up for a time, we recognize the potential for a spiritual attack through that media.

Entertainment:

Philippians 4:8 says, Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. That does not describe most of today's entertainment—television, movies, music, online games.

Games can be fun and may engage the brain a bit, but when I overdo it, it's not good. My eyes suffer, I get a backache, my brain is stimulated, and that disturbs my sleep. The bad is not worth the good.

Television and movies rarely fit the qualities in Philippians. Sure, we have The Chosen, but that's an exception. Many storylines present immoral behavior as normal and good. Cursing and vulgar language are everywhere. We become desensitized to these things and we are more susceptible to temptation. We also become less comfortable with fraternal correction because "everybody's doing it." We get used to the ways of the world, like the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, and you know what happened to them.

Music can have the same effect. Many people like to listen to music while driving or doing chores. But what music are you listening to? What are the words? How does the song talk about women? Men? Sex? Love? God? Just like with television, we can become desensitized to the messages in the music. After all, it's just a song with a nice beat. I can dance to it. But the message pulls us away from God, which is the enemy's goal.

When we fall to an attack in our entertainment, we buy into the values of the world and eventually abandon a Christian worldview.

Current Events:

This attack feeds on our desire to be informed about what's happening in the world. This is good. As good citizens, we want to be informed. But we can go overboard and the devil likes to take us there. How?

Politics. I watch the news and find out what's happening, but I don't stop watching. We have a 24-hour news cycle and, by golly, I'm going to be there for all of it. Or I go to websites or blog posts to get more information and get drawn into speculation, false information, exaggeration, and more. I might get indignant about what "they" are doing. This steals my peace. I'm agitated and angry and see my enemy as those who disagree. The real enemy is the devil, who loves to agitate, divide, and create hate.

Scandals. Scandal sells, and the media will print all the dirty details they can find or imagine. We read them like a rubbernecker passing by a pileup on the highway. Let me see how bad this is. And it may be pretty bad. I can read about the person and think I'm better than them. That's pride. I might be reluctant to forgive someone. They may have written or done something stupid years ago and changed since then, even apologized and repented, but we are not forgiving. We have no mercy. We condemn them. Very contrary to the Gospel. So you can see the devil's hand in this.

Obsession. We can obsess over things we read or watch that we have no control over. The only thing we can do is pray, and that's a powerful action, But often we don't do that. We talk about what's wrong. We complain. We become Debby Downer. We criticize. We demonize. We dehumanize—treating others as less than human. That is demonic. God told us to treat others as we want to be treated.

What is the devil's goal in each of these plugged-in areas? To damage our self-image. To damage relationships with others. To create division. To desensitize us to sin so we are more easily tempted and hesitant to correct our brothers and sisters in love. To keep us from prayer, which is essential to our spiritual growth.

Why does this work so well? What makes us easy prey? Boredom (I don't feel like reading or praying), false images of ourselves, others, and God, and fatigue (I'm tired so I'll veg out in front of the TV). Pride is often at the root of it all. I know I'm right and they are wrong. I can watch just one show, play just one game. I'm not going to be affected by the language. In reality, I can not do this alone. I need God's grace to resist the temptations that come through technology.

The devil has been very successful with this specific attack, but we are not without help fighting back. Hebrews 14:16 tells us: Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Here are some steps to follow to overcome your weakness in this area:

1. Be curious about your weaknesses. Which of the three areas is the trouble—where do you most easily fall? Why? Sit with God and ask Him to open your eyes to your weaknesses.

2. Identify the effect of this attack. What is the impact on your self-image? Your relationships with others? Your relationship with God? What are the lies you are believing? How has this weakness already affected your worldview and your understanding of sin? What is the cost of falling for this attack?

3. Reject the lies and replace them with affirmations. Focus on the positive impact of resisting the attack. What difference will it make in your life?

4. Set boundaries. How much time will you spend in each plugged-in area? Who can help you stick to your goals? How will you spend time now that you are not so plugged in?

It's good to be plugged in. We need to know what's happening. We need to connect with others who can help us get to heaven. We need to know who needs prayer. We need to learn more about our faith. All of these are good outcomes of this plugged-in world. Unless you are called to live as a hermit without internet or TV, you will be attacked here.

A friend has lived without a TV or cell phone for much of her life. She rarely connects online and has more peace than anyone I know. Her relationship with God is a model for me and many others. She has fought the distractions and won. We can, too. Maybe not overnight, but we can do it. God will give us the grace we need.

Questions for prayer:

• How often do you experience this spiritual attack? What form does it take with you and how have you been able to resist?

• How is God calling you to grow stronger in resisting this attack?