A Little History Lesson
At the dinner table the other night, I found myself giving my girls a little history lesson. We had been fasting from television at night, and as we were finishing up dinner we could all feel the pull. I figured I had better insert something that could help us refrain.
I told my girls about how families would end their days thousands of years ago. For them, when the sun went down it would get dark and sometimes cold. The family would make a fire to bring light and warmth, but it would also cause something else to happen. The fire brought the family close together, facing each other, giving them daily opportunities to connect with each other.
I then told the girls about how mankind learned to safely bring the fire inside the house with furnaces. Though this was a new invention, it still produced much of the same effect. The family would gather around the furnace for light and warmth, and found the opportunity to connect.
With the invention of the lantern and the light bulb, there was no the need to gather in the same room for some families; but still, most families could only afford to light up one room at night.
Shockingly, my girls were still listening and actually guessing who the inventors were. I pressed my luck and kept on going.
I told them how another invention helped bring families together but in a little different way: families would gather around the radio, but now they were not connecting with each other in the same way. Someone else was doing all the talking, which diminished the connection opportunity for the family.
The invention of the television had the same effect as the radio. Families would gather around the television, but the focus was not on each other. The opportunity to connect was diminished.
Strangely enough, my girls were still tracking with me.
Next I tried to bring the history lesson in for a good landing. I told them about how the computer, the tablet and the smart phone can also diminish our time to connect with each other. I told them their mom and dad are not anti-devices, and we are not anti-fun. We just want to make sure that we know each other well and connect with each other often.
At this point I could see my teenager tensing up and the younger ones’ eyes were threatening to roll. I backed off and let it be. That night we had a good time of goofing off together only using the technology God put inside of us.
I hope this week you have been able to “ruthlessly eliminate some hurry from your life,” and “waste some time with God.”
I pray God blesses you and your household,
David
p.s. A couple of really good things are coming up at Living Streams.
The Dwell Worship Conference is February 21 & 22. Everyone is invited to join us for the night sessions with Phil Wickham and Chris Quilala. It’s gonna be wonderful. $30 if you use promo code LSC2020 at dwellconference.org
If you are new to Living Streams, the Explore class (beginning February 19) will help you get connected. livingstreams.org/events