My generation will continue to struggle to read and understand the Bible if reading isn’t a normal part of our lives.
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As a member of Gen Z—the generation that grew up with smartphones—I didn’t realize how my phone was degrading my spiritual life until I had to give it up. That moment came when I graduated high school and enrolled at Summit International School of Ministry, a Bible school in rural Pennsylvania that requires students to place their phones in a lockbox as a way to eliminate distractions and focus on God. For two years, while on campus, students have no access to their phones.
The result is a few days of withdrawal symptoms, followed by four semesters of clearheadedness and long hours spent worshiping and creating—students start clubs, perform skits, write songs, and, most importantly, immerse themselves in God’s presence as never before. There was a reason my dorm supervisor called our devices “Phone Pharaohs.” The Lord’s command to Pharaoh could perhaps be applied to the smartphone: “Let my people go, so that they may worship me” (Ex. 9:1, NIV).
