I remember the first time I realized I was growing up. I’m not sure how old I was, I don’t remember exactly what prompted me to snowball down this mountain of fear, but I’ll never forget running into my parent’s room after I was supposed to be asleep and just breaking down in tears. I didn’t want to grow up. Since that night, growing up has been something I’ve tried to push to the back of my mind. Inevitably, it’s popped up when things such as getting my driver’s license, my brother starting high school, and leaving seventh period to walk around the high school stadium looking at colleges occurred, but for the most part, I haven’t thought too much about what’s going to happen when I leave high school. The other night, one of my best friends texted me and said that something had just “hit [him] really hard.” The mountain of fear and sadness and emotional mess that I thought I had conquered before I started eighth grade had just popped up right in front of my best friend. Naturally, talking with my best friend about how we’re going to college in three semesters, probably not being twenty minutes away from each other in case of emergency, and realizing we’re both going to get married one day sent me on an avalanche straight off the top of that mountain only to land me at the foot next to my best friend. It suddenly occurred to me how little time we have been given here on this earth, and how much we, or at least I, am missing the picture when it comes to embracing the best moments in life.
Confession time: I am way too wrapped up in my phone. I always have it with me. Always. If I don’t respond within a time span of an hour, my friends tend to start worrying something has happened to me. I have over 4,000 pictures on my phone, I have over 200 contacts (including several reminds) on my phone, I have about a million songs on my phone. I’m constantly in contact with someone - whether it’s helping to organize a school event, texting my best friend, or making sure my snapchat streaks aren’t broken. I don’t miss a thing when it comes to my phone. What I’ve started to notice, however, is how much I’ve been missing in the world. Now that I drive, I see the sunsets when I leave school after rehearsal. I get to watch my brother’s face light up when he talks about the latest Marvel comic. I’m able to laugh as my mom and I have mini dance parties to TobyMac and Moana. When I’m driving, I can’t use my phone, so I’m able to fully embrace being in the presence of the people I love and be in awe of the masterpieces our God creates in the sky every night. (Seriously y’all, Texas sunsets are where it’s at.) Over the course of the past two or three weeks, I’ve started making an attempt to put down my phone, and just be. Just exist - without the distraction my phone brings.
I don’t think I’m the only one who’s become so distracted with the things of this world that I’m missing the bigger picture - the moments that God has created for us to enjoy and revel in. Newsflash: God didn’t put an iPhone, or a PS4, or the complete set of first edition Percy Jackson books in the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. He created them to take delight in being with their Creator, and being with each other. And I think we, or at least I, have fallen off the boat. I’ve become so consumed with making sure our thespian outings turn out okay, and tweeting pictures of my family and I, and keeping in constant communication with people that I’m not taking in the moments around me. God created us to be with Him, to be with each other, to be in His creation striving to do His work. How can we love the broken when we’re only seeing pictures of them on Twitter? How can we spread the word of Jesus when we lock ourselves in our rooms staring at Pinterest all day? How can we fully embrace being in the presence of those God has brought into our lives so that we might have fellowship with each other and walk the narrow path of Christ together when we get together only to stare at our phones the whole time? Friends, I can’t keep doing this. It won’t be an easy fix. My phone is tempting. The ways of this world are tempting. But, my God is stronger. And He is at my side. And friends, the moments I will create when I put down my phone to embrace being with the people God has brought into my life will be worth so much more than the favorite I get on my tweet, than the pictures I take on snapchat, than the text I immediately respond to.
As we walk into 2017, I’m praying that we will strive to simply be. To put down whatever may distract us, be it our phones, our video game controllers, our books, our jobs, and take time to be with those God has placed into our lives. As I mentioned earlier, my best friend and I had a major wake up call to the amount of time we have left in high school. Most of my friends and I graduate in three semesters, and some of my dearest friends graduate this spring. I don’t want to miss a thing. I don’t want to miss my little brother (who isn’t so little anymore) grow up. I don’t want to miss being with my friends who will soon be at college. I don’t want to miss the car rides with my parents. I don’t want to miss the opportunities God is placing in my life. So this New Year, I invite you to join me as I set down my phone, I set down my distraction, and I open the door to embracing the present. To fixing my eyes on my Creator. To living in the moment. To simply being, and to loving every second of it.
Confession time: I am way too wrapped up in my phone. I always have it with me. Always. If I don’t respond within a time span of an hour, my friends tend to start worrying something has happened to me. I have over 4,000 pictures on my phone, I have over 200 contacts (including several reminds) on my phone, I have about a million songs on my phone. I’m constantly in contact with someone - whether it’s helping to organize a school event, texting my best friend, or making sure my snapchat streaks aren’t broken. I don’t miss a thing when it comes to my phone. What I’ve started to notice, however, is how much I’ve been missing in the world. Now that I drive, I see the sunsets when I leave school after rehearsal. I get to watch my brother’s face light up when he talks about the latest Marvel comic. I’m able to laugh as my mom and I have mini dance parties to TobyMac and Moana. When I’m driving, I can’t use my phone, so I’m able to fully embrace being in the presence of the people I love and be in awe of the masterpieces our God creates in the sky every night. (Seriously y’all, Texas sunsets are where it’s at.) Over the course of the past two or three weeks, I’ve started making an attempt to put down my phone, and just be. Just exist - without the distraction my phone brings.
I don’t think I’m the only one who’s become so distracted with the things of this world that I’m missing the bigger picture - the moments that God has created for us to enjoy and revel in. Newsflash: God didn’t put an iPhone, or a PS4, or the complete set of first edition Percy Jackson books in the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. He created them to take delight in being with their Creator, and being with each other. And I think we, or at least I, have fallen off the boat. I’ve become so consumed with making sure our thespian outings turn out okay, and tweeting pictures of my family and I, and keeping in constant communication with people that I’m not taking in the moments around me. God created us to be with Him, to be with each other, to be in His creation striving to do His work. How can we love the broken when we’re only seeing pictures of them on Twitter? How can we spread the word of Jesus when we lock ourselves in our rooms staring at Pinterest all day? How can we fully embrace being in the presence of those God has brought into our lives so that we might have fellowship with each other and walk the narrow path of Christ together when we get together only to stare at our phones the whole time? Friends, I can’t keep doing this. It won’t be an easy fix. My phone is tempting. The ways of this world are tempting. But, my God is stronger. And He is at my side. And friends, the moments I will create when I put down my phone to embrace being with the people God has brought into my life will be worth so much more than the favorite I get on my tweet, than the pictures I take on snapchat, than the text I immediately respond to.
As we walk into 2017, I’m praying that we will strive to simply be. To put down whatever may distract us, be it our phones, our video game controllers, our books, our jobs, and take time to be with those God has placed into our lives. As I mentioned earlier, my best friend and I had a major wake up call to the amount of time we have left in high school. Most of my friends and I graduate in three semesters, and some of my dearest friends graduate this spring. I don’t want to miss a thing. I don’t want to miss my little brother (who isn’t so little anymore) grow up. I don’t want to miss being with my friends who will soon be at college. I don’t want to miss the car rides with my parents. I don’t want to miss the opportunities God is placing in my life. So this New Year, I invite you to join me as I set down my phone, I set down my distraction, and I open the door to embracing the present. To fixing my eyes on my Creator. To living in the moment. To simply being, and to loving every second of it.