Hypnotized?
By Todd Abraham
Athens, Tennessee
Are you hypnotized by your phone? Did you know there is a direct scientific correlation between the two; hypnosis and smartphone addiction? Smartphone use has risen dramatically in the past decade. In the United States, 96% of young adults own a smartphone, and half of teenagers report feeling addicted to their phones. Other developed countries show similar rates. Researchers and reporters have compared this heavy phone use to a trance or hypnosis. Madrigal even likens the “hypnotic” state of endless social media scrolling to the trance-like absorption of slot machines, due to their intermittent rewards. If heavy smartphone use can resemble hypnosis, more hypnotizable people may also be more prone to problematic smartphone use, in which phone use interferes with daily life. The American Psychological Association defines hypnosis as a “state of consciousness involving focused attention and reduced peripheral awareness characterized by an enhanced capacity for response to suggestion”. (Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7330005).
If smartphones were used for only what they should be used for, the Lord wouldn’t have put this installment of Heartbeat Christian News in here for about 10 years! The sad part is, as we read in the above chapter, 96% of young adults now own these wicked devices and at least half of them willingly admit they are addicted to them. But no age bracket is immune to these idols except for babies who aren’t able to manipulate them. But, no worries, their parents are rushing them into the digital delusion as fast as possible. What most people don’t realize, especially Christians who should be aware, is the devil wants to control your mind. And he will unless you stay vigilant in prayer, the word of God, faithful church attendance, and take heed to God’s preachers. One of the strongest witnesses you could have to a lost soul in this age of technology is not having a smartphone! Because the most effective testimony from a Christian is one solicited from them by a lost person. It’s a proven fact that humans receive anything much more willingly when they ask for it and it is not forced upon them.
If the devil can control your mind, he has you right where he wants you. If he can’t control your mind but can keep you in a state of double-mindedness, he has right where he wants you. James 1:8 “A double-minded man is unstable in ALL his ways.” My very dear friend, former pastor, and a true prophet of God forecasted how today’s world would be a battle for the mind. Sadly, most people’s minds are already gone. Lost in a sea of mindless digital delusion. Part of what has caused this is God Almighty withdrawing His Spirit from this country which is the last spiritual Gentile Israel. Add to that, the convenience of having this small, portable idol easily carried wherever you go. What people, especially Christians, aren’t grasping is that there is typically a great extended period of God’s grace just before severe judgment falls. And when God’s anger comes to fruition, the devastation can last for several generations!
It’s up to you to seek God for the tough answers as to whether or not you are addicted to your smartphone. Ask God if there is anything in your life causing division between you and Him. If you are on the right path with the Lord, you will be blessed but you will also be faced with one challenge after another. Because the devil only attacks those who are a threat to him. So if life is smooth and easy for you, then you are backslid and need to repent and get your heart right with God. Psalms 34:19 “MANY are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.”
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Todd Abraham is an evangelist of the gospel of Jesus Christ and publisher of Heartbeat Christian News which has been in publication for 9 years now by the grace of God. You can read all about it at www.HBCNewsMonthly.com.
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