What Role Do You Want Technology to Play?
As summer begins, I'd like to pose a question to you, and I'd love for you to think about it over the next few weeks:
What role do you want technology to play in your life and in your family?
Not what role it currently plays.
What role do you want it to play?
Now, before you slip out the backdoor of this party without being seen, let me just say upfront that this is a topic I’ve struggled with, and this is a question I want to answer in a better way in my home.
Before we get too deep into this, know that I love using technology. I’ve always loved it.
In 1978 my eleven-year old self received the gift of Mr. Merlin, a hand-held electronic game. It was a marvel, and I loved playing Magic Square, Echo and Mindbender on this little gadget. It was fun. It was challenging. While immersed, trying to beat my old score, an hour could easily disappear without me (or anyone else) noticing.
I look back and laugh because Mr. Merlin was exceedingly basic. Sort of like Pong. For those of you too young to know what I’m referring to, Pong was one of the first made-for-home video games, released in 1972, where we, the players, would use a controller to bounce a “ball” back and forth on the black and white screen.
Riveting.
Fast forward to the 80’s, where if I had some extra jingle in my pocket, I’d make time to stop at one of the bars in my hometown where the Pac Man arcade game resided. I’d put in one quarter. And then another. And another. Ha.
Back then, those fun games were just that—fun. Mr. Merlin, for all its unique abilities, could not hold my attention for much longer than an hour, and when I wasn't playing the game, it was left on a shelf.
Same thing for Pong. When I went to a friend’s house who had the game, we’d play for a bit, then get up and move on to something else.
How long I could play Pac Man was really related to how many quarters I had in my pocket. When I was out, game over. Literally.
(Am I bringing back any memories? I’d love to hear your early gaming experiences of that era!)
As you know, today’s tech is radically different. My 17-year old self would be flabbergasted, intrigued and then totally sucked into a smartphone. A massive computer capable of bringing the world to my fingertips—yet so slim that it fits into a back pocket? Yes, please.
Not surprisingly, the smartphone is our constant companion, entertaining us day and night. It isn’t something we enjoy occasionally, it has become what we turn to whenever we have a moment of downtime.
Now, truth be told, I love my smartphone, my smart TV, laptop, streaming services, and social media accounts.
Yet. When is too much too much?
As I stated earlier, I'd like to pose a question to you, and I'd love for you to carry it with you over the next few weeks:
What role do you want technology to play in your life and in your family?
If you are like me, you have that feeling that something isn't quite right, and you are wondering how to come a bit more alive. When I first typed that phrase, “come a bit more alive” everything in me sat up straighter.
Even though I love technology, I know it has taken up more space in my life than I want it to. And I wonder if reducing its presence would create room for things that matter more.
More intentional conversation. More reading time. A deepening of relationships. True, authentic wonder.
And perhaps, at an even deeper level, freedom.
Freedom to choose what matters most. Freedom to be fully present to the people in front of us. Freedom to direct our attention rather than constantly having it be drawn into one more video, reel, or story.
I believe God created us for that kind of fullness—not a life held captive by endless distraction, but one marked by vibrancy, peace, and the ability to love well.
More of the experiences that make us feel fully alive.
So. Think about this question, perhaps bring it to your family discussion time. What role do you want technology to play in your life and in your family?
Not what role it currently plays.
What role do you want it to play?