The following is an article by my friend Stacy from Proverbs 31 Devotionals . She sent it out the other day and it made me pause and consider my internet use. Since many of you have expessed similar concerns I asked her if I could share it with you. I hope you will be as blessed by it as I was.
Here is her article:
In today’s busy society, it seems that we have lost the art of hospitality. People rarely take time to have company over for an evening of fun.
Because of that, it may be easy to think that the nasty habit of being a busybody has died out too. After all, First Timothy 5:13 describes a busy body as one who goes from house to house.
On the contrary, I think the busy body is thriving in today’s society. The only difference is that she has become a high tech busy body. Instead of going from house to house, she now goes from website to website, from chat room to chat room, from one bulletin board to another.
This verse in First Timothy also tells us that she learns to become an idler. The dictionary describes an idler as one who is useless, not busy, inactive, moving about aimlessly, and one who wastes.
When we think of a Miss Busy Body’s use of the computer, we can easily picture her as one who does not manage her home well. (Proverbs 31) She spends so much time online that she is not busy taking care of her home. Inactivity in the home tends to lead to piles of dirty laundry and dirty dishes. There will be dusty furniture and sticky floors. There will be unmade beds and piles of clutter. Things in the home continue to pile up while she continues to wander aimlessly around the Web, soon finding herself tangled in that very web.
I can picture her husband coming home to a disorganized home every night, giving her a disgusted look that says, “What did you do all day?”
I would imagine that there is a lot of bickering in the home because the kids are looking for something, unable to find it because of her lack of managing her home. I can picture her finally getting around to fixing the evening meal, only to discover that she doesn’t have the necessary ingredients – all because she chose to be online all day, rather than fulfilling the ministry of taking care of her home and family.
We can imagine this high tech lady rising early, not to get into the Word, but to check out her favorite websites. She convinces herself she will do devotions later, only to see a hot topic arise on a particular board. She chooses instead to see what juicy discussions take place. Little does she realize that those morsels of gossip go down into her deepest parts. (Proverbs 18:8)
It is no wonder she soon feels empty, void, barren, and dead inside. Have you ever felt that way? These words are the descriptive words used in the Thesaurus to describe one who is idle.
If these words fit how you often feel, could it be that you have become a high tech busy body? Is it time to turn off the World Wide Web in order to spend time with the Creator of this whole wide world?
© 2006, Stacy R. Miller
Proverbs 31
Phyllis Sather
Proclaiming God’s Faithfulness at:
http://www.Phyllis-Sather.com
© 2007 Phyllis Sather
Contact me at: Phyllis@Phyllis-Sather.com
1 Comment
Belinda Letchford
mmmmmm…. not much more to say is there Phyllis?!! Thanks for posting
I have certainly been feeling this need to reduce computer time, and focus on my heart for my home. The house may be clean but my heart isn’t in the home.
It seems to me that this message is popping up on many blogs – women are searching for balance – I know I am. I have slowed down my visiting, commenting, forums and even my own writing.
So once again thanks for posting and keeping this challenge out there.
Have a great weekend with your family.
Belinda