Read
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.
Isaiah 26:3
Reflect
As a teacher, I see it almost every day. There is such a cultural disconnect between the youth of today and anyone older than 25. Think about the differences in the way that each generation has grown up:
- My grandparents grew up in a world where the news was always in print, and were young adults when radio became common.
- My parents grew up in a world where radio was the standard, and were young adults when TV became common.
- My generation grew up in a world where TV was common, but there were only a handful of channels. Cable came along in my teens, and the Internet was just a baby until I was in my 30s.
- My daughter’s generation has never known a world without hundreds of channels on TV. They’ve always had cell phones or an Internet, though they started with flip phones.
- Today’s teens have never known a world without smartphones or Internet on demand. For many of them, cable isn’t even necessary because they can stream everything they want to watch through the Internet.
When you think about the media messages my grandparents were exposed to, it might have been in the single digits or maybe in the dozens when they were in their teens. In our present digital age, we are bombarded by between 6,000 and 10,000 advertising messages every day.
It’s not just advertising. Between television, radio, billboards, email, text messages and other streaming sources, we are in a state of constant sensory bombardment. It’s to the point that some people are developing anxiety from sensory overload, and most of us are probably overly stimulated visually each day.
So what’s the answer?
The Lord reminds us constantly that those who draw near to Him find refuge and peace. In Isaiah 26:3 we read that, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” Without a quiet place and some time alone with Jesus, we can easily become jaded, frustrated, confused and manipulated by a secular society. To use familiar terms, we all need some time to “chill out,” “chillax,” or to just unwind.
Jesus is asking us to take stock of our spiritual lives and to refuse the confusion of our modern world. Today, make sure you take a few minutes to chill out in the Lord. Instead of allowing yourself to become overwhelmed and immersed in an overdose of sensory stimulation, take a step back and accept His peace.
Reflection copyright © 2025 Doug DeBolt and Charles Fulton.
