Doomscrolling is a strange word, but we’ve become all too well acquainted with it. What can start as innocent scrolling on the internet, looking for hair tutorials, recipes, or funny pet videos, can end up with us unintentionally seeing brutal violence, fighting, name-calling, or anxiety-provoking negativity. This article isn’t about internet policies or how to get violence and lying offline, but about our preemptive actions. As I often tell my patients, “We can’t control what comes towards us in life, but only how we will react to it” and I’d love for us to take a step in the direction of reclaiming control over what we let into our minds, eyes, and hearts, especially since we have the power in our fingers to put it down.
Unfortunately, a large gate that lets bitterness, arguments, malice, and violence into our personal lives fits into the very palm of our hand. Though it has many blessings and beauty, this world is also a very dark place to be. A digital sabbath may mean limiting the use of your phone on a particular day, time of day, or only allowing certain apps to be downloaded. However, the point of this article is to give you Biblical habits that can help you break the act of doomscrolling and help you regain your peace.
The world mocks something that we as Christians can do that is powerful and world-changing: prayer. When a travesty happens, we take action to help and support; part of that action is prayer. You may be feeling uncertain about what you are struggling with regarding your phone. I encourage you to pray about what God wants you to do. Many people need their phones for safety. Just as I wouldn’t tell someone to unplug their landline, I am not saying to get rid of your cellphones. But we don’t need a constant decision maker on our screen that changes every 20 seconds, telling us what to look at or think. Conversations with God through prayer can be the starting point to examining your struggles and sitting quietly and humbly to hear from Him. Jesus is our best example of this, as it says in Luke 5:16 that “... Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.”
Repenting is the action of acknowledging your weakness, addiction, idolatry, or fear of God and then adhering to changing your actions as a result of the grace bestowed upon you from Jesus. A Biblical habit that helps to keep me humble is repenting to Jesus when I’ve stumbled and looking at where I place specific priorities and wishes. I can find myself scrolling to back up what my prideful heart wants to hear, and before too long, I start feeling filled up by the wrong cup. As the Lord told Soloman in 2 Chronicles 7:14, “... if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” The promise of healing is there; we have to take this step of repentance to start.
After prayer and repentance, action is needed. As it says in Proverbs 12:1, “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid.” While phone use is individualized, and since no one-size-fits-all way might work for everyone, we need to look at our own patterns and weaknesses and set up boundaries to help change old ways. This discipline may mean you communicate with family and friends by phone instead of chat groups or messenger to keep your eyes and fingers off apps for a while. Maybe you can change the hours your phone is allowed to open specific apps, or you have a downtime restriction set up. During Lent this past year, I had set up a new habit of going to bed at a particular time every night and not picking my phone up again from the nightstand after setting my alarm for the next morning. It took a while for the habit to set in, but once it did, I felt freedom and a more restful sleep than I had experienced in a long time.
Our phones have become more than just a communication tool; we use them to travel around. Now, with the internet, it is ready for scouring at any time, and there is an endless depth of images and information that anyone can go through. We also have news and outlets constantly breaking news about events that are happening around the world. We can become, unfortunately, desensitized to evil, slander, malice, and provocativeness the more it is in our face. As we are told in 1 Peter 5:8-9, we as Christians have to constantly remember to: “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers worldwide is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” Recognizing evil for what it is will help us reclaim our peace and want to put our phones down more often.
We know where we are watching something or reading something that is not uplifting for our mind and heart, and we feel that slight tug to turn it off or scroll away. That is the Holy Spirit guiding us. Instead of taking a break and settling my soul, I can get addicted to the dopamine of agreeing with someone and continuing to scroll. I must be diligent and mindful to listen to the Holy Spirit and follow His lead. In John 14:25-27, Jesus says to us: “All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of everything I have said. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” I am so grateful for the Holy Spirit’s guidance; we must listen and follow.
We stay glued to our phones, for the most part, to send and receive information. If you live alone, maybe it’s a sense of comfort to you to listen to a person, or a group of people, discuss something. Not all phone use is unhealthy, as I have grown in my relationship with Jesus through motivational and scripturally based posts, music, podcasts, and the Bible app. But if you feel like you are sliding into a scrolling state headed for doom, I recommend placing your phone on the opposite side of the room and picking up a physical copy of the Bible. Our phones may be shining a blue light into our eyes, but the physical Word of God will shine His light. As it says in Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” Feeling discouraged about the state of the world? Check out James to find a nugget of encouragement. Feel unseen? Check out the ministry and mission of our Savior, Jesus, in one of the four gospels to see just how loved you are, my friend. Make reading the Word a habit, and your mind, body, and soul will begin to crave it.
I want to share the final Biblical habit that can help break doomscrolling and reclaim peace: to get alone with Jesus. Just as you know when a friend is preoccupied in your conversation when they keep looking at their phone, Jesus knows when we are really seeking His presence. It may seem startling initially to sit in silence, pray aloud or in your heart, and wait in silence for His response. The digital world screams for your attention, whether by outrageous catch phrases, redundant musical phrases, or outlandish pictures. The opposite of that is the peace and presence of Jesus.
Knowing God’s heart and being led by the Holy Spirit takes time and habits. If you’re in a season where it’s hard to find a quiet moment, start by talking to Him in the car, doing laundry, or even cooking. Using your hands, while simultaneously being off your phone, is a great way to start the habit of craving communion with our Savior. John 16:33 is a promise from Jesus that I keep in my heart at all times, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Remember that Jesus has the key to our peace while living in such a beautiful but often volatile world.
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