How to win the war for your attention
“And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.” — John 17:3
‘We are formed in the image of what we habitually gaze at.’ — Justin Whitmel Earley
Hook.
Hold.
Harvest.
Repeat.
Whether we like it or not, when we pick up our phones to scroll, swipe and tap, our attention is being hooked, held and harvested for the benefit of the platforms we use.
A pretty uncomfortable thought, right?
The very algorithms and technologies that claim to be there for our benefit and entertainment are engineered to capture and monetise our attention.
These platforms aren’t just making money from us—they’re also shaping how we think, act and relate to one another—as we’ve written about on The Journal previously.
Many of us now struggle to concentrate on our work, relationships and God.
Our attention spans are short, and our focus is fragmented.
We feel hurried, restless, disconnected, exhausted.
It would be easy to imagine that all our problems would be solved if we could just remove social media from the world altogether.
And when it comes to our spiritual lives, we often think that if only we limited our use of technology, or had a weekly screen detox, or deleted our apps, our relationship with God would flourish.
We’d suddenly live distraction-free lives. Our attention that was once hooked and held by reels and TikTok videos would now be absorbed by Jesus instead.
But does that really get to the heart of the problem?
The war for our attention
It’s easy to point the finger of blame at tech companies for engineering the platforms that capture and harvest our attention.
And there does need to be accountability where these companies are to blame for real harm and damage.
But the real problem for followers of Jesus isn’t just that our attention is being hooked and held by social media platforms like Instagram or Facebook or TikTok.
The problem is that, every day, our sinful hearts are being hooked and held by idols that prise our attention and love away from Jesus and onto the things of this world.
John Calvin famously said that we are ‘a perpetual factory of idols’.
We are forever giving our time, attention and worship to things that are not God—fraudulent gods that promise life but leave us feeling empty, restless and craving more.
The problem of idolatry existed long before social media, and will continue to exist long after it.
Or, to put it another way—you don’t just have a social media problem; you have an idol problem.
That means that while a screen detox or fasting from technology might be a helpful practice, it can’t overcome the problem of our sinful hearts—that our love and attention is being constantly drawn from Jesus and onto the idols of money, sex, status, wealth and success.
Social media acts as a megaphone that amplifies and exploits these idols—but it is not the cause of them.
Instagram, for example, can draw us into comparison and envy at the seemingly perfect influencers who fill our feeds with their seemingly perfect lives. It amplifies the sin of envy—but it didn’t create it.
So, if we want to be less distracted by the things of this world and more attentive to Jesus, what we need most isn’t just a technology detox or to delete our social media apps.
Heart-change doesn’t just come from subtracting things from our lives—from trying as hard as we can to cut out our distractions, bad habits and idols.
Transformation comes from having a bigger vision of Jesus.
It doesn’t just come from running from the things that distract us and fragment our attention, but by filling our gaze with something, Someone, better.
Becoming what we behold
In Jesus’ famous prayer for His followers in John 17, He says that this is eternal life—“to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth” (John 17:3).
Do you see what’s happening here? Eternal life—the life in Jesus that His followers already get to enjoy—isn’t, first and foremost…
A set of habits or spiritual disciplines
A list of things that we should or shouldn’t do
A ‘detox’ from distractions like social media
A programme of behaviour change
It is knowing God.
True life comes when our minds and hearts are absorbed by something better—Someone better—as we behold God the Father in the face of God the Son.
If we want to be less distracted by the things of this world and more attentive to Jesus—if we want to live the life He has called us to—we must first be captivated by Him.
Because, unless our attention and our love are tethered to Him, they will always drift elsewhere.
This is the life that Jesus calls us to—a life of communion with God the Father, enjoyed in union with Christ the Son, and empowered by the Holy Spirit.
We become what we behold—we are shaped by that which most occupies our minds and hearts. In the words of Justin Whitmel Earley that opened this email: ‘We are formed in the image of what we habitually gaze at’.
That means that real heart-change comes from being in Christ—beholding His glory and goodness, abiding in Him, drawing on His life-giving power.
If you want to see transformation in your life—if you want to put aside your idols and give God your undivided attention—it begins by stopping and gazing at Jesus.
As we behold more of His glory, the glittering idols of this world lose their seductive appeal.
As we behold more of His beauty, the empty spectacles that fill our Instagram feeds seem trivial and meaningless.
As we behold more of His goodness and grace, the disciplines of prayer and Bible reading become ever more desirable, as we seek to grow in our love and devotion to Him.
It is only as you are captivated by Jesus that the hold of this world on your attention and love will be broken.
It is only as you enjoy Him that the lure of sin will seem less enjoyable.
It is only as you satisfy yourself with His goodness that you will see idolatry for what it really is—empty, hollow, worthless.
So, slow down. Open your Bible and think deeply on Him. Behold His goodness, His glory, His love and His grace.
And, as you do, see yourself slowly become more like Him.
With love,
Mike