Life without a cell phone

Over the last few years I've often wondered what life would be like without a cell phone. It's crazy the number of things we depend on it for: GPS directions from one place to another, social media, text messages, phone calls, alarm clock, camera, music, and endless other apps that are readily available. It certainly adds a lot of quantity to our lives. We seem to have an endless number of contacts, people we keep in touch with, and if we want, we can have an endless amount of data so that we can be on our phones all day. We have internet on our phones so it's essentially a little computer in our hands.

Personally, all of the quantity of things that are available through my cell phone decreases the quality of my life. I can't sit through a meal or meeting with someone without my phone vibrating in my pocket multiple times. And though I generally try not to pull out my phone, for the sake of those in front of me, my mind still wanders to who might be contacting me and what they might want from me. Recently, one of my good friends gave a sermon describing anxiety as a divided mind. I can honestly say that my phone has brought me a great deal of anxiety because it divides my attention daily. As a minister, I already feel "on call" 24/7, but how much more so when anybody can contact me in an instant from anywhere in the world. My wife deserves more of me, and those who I am with deserve more of me.

Those who know where I'm going might begin to make statements like, "It might be ideal to go without a cell phone, but it's not very practical in today's day and age" or "Why don't you just cut back on having it with you all the time?"
I've been reading a book that describes the burdens we often place on ourselves by making so many "have to" statements. For most of the things we say we "have to" do we actually have a choice in the matter. In today's society we "have to" have a cell phone, right? We actually have a choice. One of the most convicting passages of Scripture for me comes from Paul's letter to the Galatians, "For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ."
When I'm honest with myself, I do a lot of things to try to please people under the pretense that I'm serving others for the sake of Christ. Personally, for me to be able to best love God with my undivided heart and to love people better, I believe it's best that I go without a cell phone for the foreseeable future (starting at the end of this month). I realize that this won't please a lot of people, but know that I can still be reached via my office phone, Facebook or email. Just don't expect an immediate response because I always want to prioritize those who are in front of me.

I'll do my very best not to bind my personal convictions on others in this matter, because ultimately everyone has to make the decisions that they know in their heart will be best for their relationship with God, in regard to phones or whatever other matters of opinion we're faced with.

I know, I know. I'll have to pull out a map on the highway. I'll have to leave an hour earlier on road trips. I'll have to read my Bible from a book that can be held in my hands. I may have to get an actual camera, and maybe even an ipod. Hopefully I'll become a more patient person. Hopefully I'll become a more peaceful person. Hopefully you'll love spending time with me because you'll know you're getting 100% of my attention. All in all I'm very hopeful when I think of this transition. Fifty years from now when I look back on my life I can't possibly see myself regretting this one bit.