I would like to argue that the smartest people in the world are those who never scroll through social media.
This is my sad reality. I feel addicted at times. It feels as though the habit of mindlessly scrolling is an act of handing over my personal decision-making power. I have a brief moment, I open my phone and scroll. I just woke up, I open and scroll. I need to go to bed, I open and scroll. I’m watching a movie, I open and scroll. My kid is talking to me, I ignore them and keep scrolling. Sitting in church, I open and scroll. This is honestly what it feels like.
I consume a mountain of content I never intended to consume. And it’s all because I surrender my agency and what I consume to the Social Media Gods who know what is best for me. They fill my mind with dreams and aspirations. They tell me what a good spouse does. They tease me with things that arouse my passions and desires. They teach me what is right and wrong in life. They show me just how far someone is willing to go selling their soul for money, power, and influence. And I continue to consume.
There are those who will scoff at this. Some may also call me weak. I think I just admitted I am weak. Some may say it’s no big deal, it’s life, it’s reality, it’s a modern age, or whatever. Some may say I am too sensitive or a prude. But what does the spirit tell me? It tells me the things the Social Media Gods are feeding me are intended to draw me away from God.
There are some who will say, it’s all cookies, search history, and algorithms. I do agree there are aspects to that. That is why I see images of temples, quotes from prophets, and scripture memes. However, I also feel they sprinkle in content based on what is popular and trending, what your demographic would likely consume, propaganda, targeted marketing, and psychological and emotional manipulation to hook you into consuming more. Let’s be real. They make money by views because advertisers pay them based on views. Their goal is to get you to consume more.
I am choosing to consume their content based on how they feed it to me. They are not obligated to only show me the specific things I want to see. They do show me those things in quantities sufficient that I feel I am benefiting from the service. I am sure we will one day see the full extent to which social media companies have been shaping society through manipulation.
President Nelson said, “But in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.” and “Only a man who has paid the price for priesthood power will be able to bring miracles to those he loves and keep his marriage and family safe, now and throughout eternity.”
I believe part of that price is sacrifice. What are you willing to give up or lay upon the altar of sacrifice to have the influence of the Holy Ghost and to have Priesthood Power? Are we willing to sacrifice our consumption of social media?
I had a family health crisis yesterday. The first thing that came to mind was to call upon the power of heaven. The second thing that came to mind was what I saw scrolling through social media the day before and I didn’t feel worthy because of what I had seen. Don’t get me wrong, I have not done anything or searched for anything grievous. But, what I had willingly consumed didn’t make me feel worthy to expect a miracle.
I thought of this over and over yesterday and last night. How do I now use social media if I am writing a blog and sharing it? I realized that I could share content without consuming content. But, I also realized I need to be much more disciplined in my consumption. I consume out of habit, rather than focusing and channeling my thoughts in a more positive direction outside of social media. It will take some work. I need to do some self-reflection and make some choices as to what I really want out of life.
Your hour of greatest need will surely come when you least expect it. In that moment, when you need to call on the powers of heaven the most, do you want to be standing there remembering what you saw in your social media feed feeling unworthy to perform a mighty miracle? You could go through the motions and call upon heaven anyhow but heaven will not answer.
I can do much better. I can’t change the past, but I can change my future. I believe the smartest people are those who never start to scroll in the first place.
Image is from: Premium Photo | Disheartened Man Standing in the Midst of Turbulent Crashing Waves Generative AI (freepik.com)