A Practical Way to Get in Touch with God

What is the point of Lent?

It’s simple: to know and love God more on Easter morning than we do today. (Fr. Mike Schmitz first said this in one of his homilies.) If you’re giving up chocolate this year, that’s cool. But I would encourage you to make sure not eating chocolate helps you get to know God better, too. Don’t just deprive yourself of something you love for no reason.

One practical way we can do that—know God’s heart better—is by cultivating a practice of stillness.

Sitting still, taking deep breaths, and noticing my heartbeat is something I rarely do these days. Even if my body sits still, my mind rarely does.

You can probably relate.

I believe that returning to a practice of daily stillness, even for 10 or 15 minutes, would change my life. I think Lent is the perfect time to start something like this.

I was recently introduced to the idea of implementing the following practice: an hour a day, a day a week, and a week a year without technology. (Andy Crouch first shared this philosophy.)

“Yes!” I thought.

“That is totally doable, and will be so beneficial, and I’m going to start right now!”

So, I put my phone down, closed my laptop, and went downstairs.

And promptly turned on Netflix.

Here’s the thing: I was well into a show before I realized, “Wait, this is technology!”

Another time, I decided I would create a “phone sabbath” for myself—one day a week (usually Sunday) when I turn my phone off and enjoy my day without the constant itch to scroll, to compulsively open my email (no one you’re dying to hear from emails you on Sunday, by the way), or to stay in constant connection with my friends by having a literal, all-day, non-stop text conversation.

The few times I’ve done a phone sabbath have been wonderful and freeing. I feel peace in my body. My brain heaves a deep sigh of relief. I luxuriate in the reprieve from constant stimulation.

Sadly, the practice of a phone sabbath hasn’t lasted very long. I meal plan on Sundays and get a lot of my recipes from Pinterest, and this often leads me down a rabbit hole of mindlessly switching from Pinterest to Instagram, and then to Facebook, and then to my iPhone’s News app, and then email, and then the next thing I know, I’ve been a phone zombie for the last hour and a half.

Don’t get me wrong, technology isn’t all bad. The ways it helps us are profound. But I, for one, know that I need to regain my control over my technology consumption. I need to remember that technology serves me. I don’t serve it.

If we put our phone down long enough and let our bodies and minds be still, they will naturally open up.  You probably can’t focus on God and on Instagram at the same time.

So, for the rest of Lent, I’m going to institute a phone sabbath on Sundays, and I’m going to take 15 minutes a day to just be still. (Maybe I’ll get really ambitious and start a “one hour a day, one day a week” practice, too!)

What do technology and stillness have to do with getting in touch with God? If we put our phone down long enough and let our bodies and minds be still, they will naturally open up. You may have to intentionally turn your mind to God once you let it sit still, but you probably can’t focus on God and on Instagram at the same time.

A lot of junk may come to the surface—thoughts you’re ashamed of, your doubts, your fears, your insecurities—but when that happens, don’t try to shut it down. Sit with it for a while, and let God sit with you in it, too. That’s when you’ll start to see a change.

Will you join me for the next four weeks in having a weekly phone sabbath, as well as 15 daily minutes of stillness? Let’s see what happens when we give ourselves some time every week to decompress and turn our minds to God.