These tips could help you get unplugged. I suggest the times you get unplugged to use to reflect on God, Read the Bible, being in Prayer and Spend the time with the family.

How to get unplugged from your devices

 The widespread use of technology is undeniable. According to data from the Pew Research Center, as of October 2014, 64 percent of Americans owned a smartphone. In January of the same year, 42 percent of Americans owned a tablet computer while 32 percent owned an e-reader.

Spend too much time on our devices

While technology is often convenient, many people find themselves spending more time on their devices than they might prefer. Overexposure to communications technology is considered detrimental to kids and adults, and some parents might be surprised to learn just how much time their youngsters are spending using different forms of media. A 2010 survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation found that kids spend more than seven hours per day using various forms of media. That’s especially disconcerting when considering the American Academy of Pediatrics says that overexposure to media can increase kids’ risk of aggressive behavior and interest in alcohol and smoking, and lead to poor performance in school.

Some Tips to Get Unplugged

So how can families who have grown accustomed to using their devices find ways to unplug? The following are a handful of strategies families can employ to reduce the amount of time they’re spending on their smartphones, tablets and laptops.

Start monitoring usage

• Realizing just how much time you spend on your various devices is a great first step toward unplugging. As you go about your day, jot down each and every time you use any of your devices and what you are doing while using them, and ask family members to do the same. Do so for roughly one week. This should have given ample time to provide an adequate picture of how much time you’re spending on your devices and what you are using them for. Don’t beat yourself up if the numbers shock you, just resolve to lower those numbers and continue to monitor your device usage as you do so.

Cut out the media junk food

• As you examine your device usage, you may notice you are spending lots of time on fruitless activities, whether it’s catching up on the latest Internet gossip or scanning friends’ social media pages to pass the time. Eliminating these activities from your day is unlikely to have an adverse affect on your life, and you will find yourself with more time to enjoy more unplugged time with family and friends. God told us we must remove our hindrances, the same goes on your technological. devices.

Schedule your media time

• Many of today’s adults grew up in homes where their parents restricted the time they spent watching television. Today’s parents can take a similar approach by limiting the amount of time their kids spend on their devices while also placing the same restrictions on themselves. Allow yourself a certain amount of time each day to spend on your devices, even scheduling times each day when you will watch some television or catch up with friends on social media. Stick to this schedule and you will likely see your device usage decrease dramatically.

Recharge devices outside of your bedroom

• Many adults can’t resist the urge to scan work emails or social media right before going to bed, and that can increase device usage and have a negative impact on sleep. When plugging devices in at night, be sure to charge them outside of your bedroom so you aren’t tempted to indulge in some extra and unnecessary usage at the end of the day. I know this step is hard, because some of us use our phones as alarm clocks, but having it in another room or away from arm’s reach can also help us get up and not hit the snooze button when the alarm goes off.

Can you got 1 year?

Can you go 1 day without any electronic device? How about 1 week? 1 Month? What about the big one, 1 Year? I am sure most of us cannot make it one day at most without these devices. We are too dependent on these devices.

We tend to check our phones for messages before we go to bed or as we are laying down to go to bed and we will do the same as we are waking. Not to mention, we don’t take the time to see what message God has for us by reading the Bible instead of our technological type of messages we get.

Best Tip of All

Get Unplugged & take that time to read the Bible! Spend that time also praying; talking to God our Heavenly Father. Maybe even include the family in your Bible study and have everyone turn off all electronic devices. We make time for what is important to us. Is God and His word top priority?

Most of us, couldn’t go a few hours without one. Today we are too dependent on technology. We must keep our phones with us. But I encourage you to turn these devices off at least when you do your personal quiet time and even when you do your family devotional time. Maybe even require all the devices turned off when you enjoy your family meal together.

If you have to use your device

If you have to use your device maybe use a Bible app instead to read God’s Word. Share Bible verses on your favorite social media network. You can also check out these blog post too.

• How Social Media Can Help Your Ministry
• Using Social Media to share your faith
• How Social Media Can Affect Your Career

Get Unplugged!

So get unplugged! Turn off or unplug that device that takes you away from God and His time. This list can include a computer, laptop, tablet, cell phone and more. Anything that we put before God becomes an idol that includes social media and our technological devices that help us communicate with the world. Once you get unplugged, take that time to spend with God in prayer and in His Word. God’s Word will never do you good, if you don’t open it and up and read it.

Comments Welcome

What are some other ways you to get unplugged or do you know any tips to unplug from your mobile devices such as cell phones, computers, tablets and other electronic devices.

_{Article compliments of MetroCreative Article Number EL156244. These tips are given to help you unplug, there are more ways.Addition added August 25, 2016.}

About the Author

Steve Patterson

A Christian Blogger that enjoys blogging about the Bible, Theology, God, Jesus Christ, Christian Music, Family, Cats, Odd Holidays, sewing and much more. I have been blogging since 2004, however, I have been blogging on Courageous Christian Father since 2012. I enjoy listening to Christian Music. I am married with 1 daughter, 2 step-sons and a step daughter.

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