Smartphones are wonderful devices, enabling us to stay in touch with people and to stay connected to the world. They have become for many much more than a portable means of communication; they are our lifeline to information, our connection to friends and family, our means of sharing experiences, our music centre, our library, our map for life. We feel bereft and naked without them, cut off from ideas, people and news.
Yet a smartphone is only useful as long as the battery is charged. Without this, it’s a piece of dead metal. It needs regular connection (usually via a charger) to a source of electricity in order to function, and the more sophisticated the smartphone, the more it regularly needs the charging connection.
We are marvellous creatures, fearfully and wonderfully made (Ps 139:13-14), but, like the smartphone, we regularly need plugging in to be charged up. If we are to function at our best, we need regular rest and sleep, healthy food and frequent exercise to keep our bodies on top form. We also need to be plugged in to God to maintain spiritual function. We need time for prayer, to listen quietly to God and to share with Him our hopes, dreams, disappointments and needs. We need time for His word so that we can be shaped like plasticine or clay into the person He wants us to be. We need to be plugged into fellowship, for no man is an island and we were created for community.
Just as there aer things we need to do on a daily basis to maintain our health – brushing our teeth, washing, dressing appropriately for the climate – there are spiritual practices we need to employ regularly to keep our spiritual energy renewed.
Devote yourself to prayer, never miss an aopportunity to meditate on God’s word, seek out other Christians to encourage you and to build faith, be committed to serving God. As the meerkats say, ‘simples!’