Slow Down
Introduction (700 words)
Introduce a problem, you have been living this content, how do you get them to see the problem? Hook.
Jab 1
I listened to a podcast this week by one of my favourite authors, Cal Newport, where he interviewed a journalism professor named Chris Moody, who intentionally lives without internet and cellphone service at home, in a log cabin near the university where he teaches.
Before becoming a professor, Chris was a senior journalist for CNN covering politics, working out of New York City. He speaks of this frantic life that was always connected, always looking for the next scoop, following news stories late into the night.
The podcast follows his story of “quitting connectivity,” starting small by putting their phones in a basket for two hours each evening. But the largest shift came after losing his job in 2018. Chris, now a parent, had his screen time creep toward eight hours a day, just scrolling while sitting with the baby. His wife told him something that stopped him cold: “when you pull out your phone, it’s as though you disappear.” He asked her one day if they should try something different. She said, get rid of the internet. He asked, when? She said, right now.
So he and his wife made a change. They cancelled the internet, turned their home into what they call a “Sabbath space,” and started rebuilding old habits, using a landline, keeping a phone book by the door, watching a DVD instead of streaming, reading aloud to their son. Not because the outside world is bad, but because presence has to be protected. It doesn’t happen by accident.
What struck me most was how ordinary his solution was. No grand theory, just deliberate boundaries around the one space he could control: his home.
Jab 2 (100 words)
Jab 3 (300 words)
Right Hook (100 words)
Explanation (700 words)
What does scripture reveal about the problem? Don’t answer the questions. Tension.
Teaching Point 1 (230 words)
Teaching Point 2 (230 words)
Teaching Point 3 (230 words)
Application (700 words)
What can we do about it? Resolution.
Action 1 (230 words)
Action 2 (230 words)
Action 3 (230 words)
One Liner
Enter one liner here
See Also
Our gift: the miracle of daily life. Our invitation: presence and surrender into the flow of life. Our response: expediency, always consuming, never ‘off’
Relation to scripture: Our inheritance = the full life promised by Christ. The farmer = a loving God who draws us in The seed = the constant planting that God does in our lives (sermons, books, movies, friends, thoughts etc.) The condition for the seed = the condition of our heart, our willing receptivity to God’s seed.
The commentary/reflection: why are we so addicted? why can we never unplug? never surrender?
Question: How can we help the congregation reflect and adjust with clarity and not guilt?