The Wellspring Blog

Introduction: There really is doom in doom scrolling… It’s 11PM. You’re unwinding before bed, and decide to take a peek at your favorite social media platform. Three hours later, you’ve watched 200 videos about microplastics - a topic you hadn’t thought about before tonight. Now you’re convinced they’re everywhere. In your food, your air, your bloodstream. Future archaeologists will dig you up and say, “Ah yes, another Plastic Person from the 21st Century.” …and then you expect your brain to go to sleep after overloading it with hours of negative content. By definition, doom scrolling is “spending excessive time online scrolling through content that makes one feel sad, anxious, or angry.” Maybe you’ve successfully stayed away from the “doom” content like microplastics, but maybe you still struggle with watching hours of cooking tutorials, coffee ASMR, or whatever else you may like to watch. Ironically, many of the short-form videos keeping you hooked with little dopamine hits might be the ones telling you how to stop: Put your phone in another room. Use a real alarm clock. Delete the apps. Replace scrolling with something else. These can be helpful practical habits when it comes to fleeing immorality, but Jeremiah 17:9 also reminds us, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” A phone in another room might stop you from swiping, but that alone won’t change the heart attitude that makes you crave it in the first place. So why do we doom scroll? Here are three reasons. Escapism If you’ve ever been standing in line, in a waiting room, or on public transportation, almost every single person near you is on their phone. Everyone is isolated in their own little world, probably scrolling social media, or perhaps playing a game, or reading a news story, or texting. I’ve heard plenty of people lament that we’ve lost the art of being bored. But this isn’t a new phenomena: it’s been around longer than the cell phone. The issue isn’t the phone itself, it’s our tendency to want to escape the situation that we are in (whether due to our fear of boredom, or of initiating a conversation, etc.), and replace it with something safe or entertaining. Now I wouldn’t say my recommendation is to never use your phone in “boring” situations. It is advantageous to be able to send emails, respond to text messages, and even entertain yourself a bit through videos when you really have nothing else to do (see my previous article about moderation for more of my thoughts on that topic). But the problem arises when we’re always escaping from the settings where we ought to be present. Think of families sitting at dinner, each absorbed in their own screen instead of each other. Or someone mindlessly scrolling Instagram Reels during work hours. It’s not about eliminating phone use completely, but about recognizing when we’re using it with intentionality for good versus when we’re just distracting ourselves. Next time you instinctively reach for your phone, try to replace that instinct with a brief moment of self-awareness to pause and ask: Am I using this wisely, or just numbing my mind? Instant Reward By now, it’s well documented that phones trigger dopamine hits with every like, message, or video we watch. Dopamine is the "feel-good" hormone and humans are naturally wired to seek it out. That’s why, after closing Instagram, you might find yourself doom scrolling on Facebook instead. And once you close Facebook, it’s easy to start doom scrolling the news. By then, there’s surely something new on Instagram so you might want to return to see what’s new. Or worse, if you’ve ever closed an app just to immediately open the same app again by way of habit, take that as your cue to admit you may have a problem. I lament to say I’ve been there. But the issue, once again, comes down to the heart. Proverbs 25:28 says, "A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls." While it’s true that technology is designed to exploit our natural craving for instant pleasure, the same can be said of things like junk food or gambling. For some, this might mean turning off notifications or even deleting social media altogether. But even if you take those steps, without discipline, you may find yourself replacing one addictive habit with another. You can’t fix your issues with technology if you treat those issues as if they’re independent from your heart/character. FOMO Part of the reason I struggled with quitting Instagram was Instagram Stories. It was so addicting to see what people were up to, and since Stories disappear after 24 hours, you had to be constantly online to make sure you didn’t miss one. In today’s social media age, we "connect" with people by liking their posts. While it’s easy to feel like we’re missing out, we often find ourselves keeping up with people who don’t impact our lives and learning things we don’t need to know about them. The same can be said about the news cycle: we feel the need to stay up-to-date on every event happening in the Middle East, Africa, or even a few states away; surely certain people ought to keep up with news at this scale, but if you’re not able to take action in response to this news within your spheres of authority, do you really need to keep up with that media? Ecclesiastes 1:8 says, "All things are full of weariness; a man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing." No matter how much we consume - whether it's updates from friends, breaking news, or mindless entertainment - we rarely reach a point where we say, "That's enough. I'm satisfied." There’s always another story, another post, another headline pulling us back in. While social media has benefits for staying connected, the next time you find yourself mindlessly scrolling, I encourage you to ask: Why are you checking X again? Do you truly care about what others are doing, or are you simply voyeuristically peering into their lives? Subscribe now How to Stop If you recognize that you have a doom scrolling problem, how do you actually stop? I mentioned some practical steps above that might work for you: turning off notifications, deleting apps, or moving your phone to the other side of the room before bed. But if the issue is really your heart, those actions might merely wash the outside of the cup (which is good as far as it goes) but the inside of the cup needs a good cleaning too (see Matthew 23:25-26 for more context on the dirty cup analogy). Proverbs 4:23 says, "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Here are a few suggestions to address the heart issues we’ve discussed: Confess and repent of any sin you may have committed. If you've been sinning through your doom scrolling (consuming unwholesome content, neglecting responsibilities, etc.) confess those sins to the Lord and repent. Train your heart to love the things of God. I’ll expand more on this in my next article, but it’s important to recognize that even if you cut things out, that may not be enough. Joshua 1:8 says "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." We are exhorted to focus on the things of God first and in all things as we align our lives accordingly. This will take time, but consistently filling your mind with the things of God will gradually reshape your desires. Replace your doom scrolling with edifying content. When you find yourself with available time to consume content but aren’t sure what to read, watch, or listen to, why not fill that space with something that builds you up? To avoid hopping into the Gluttonous Fool’s ditch, this takes intentionality. If you’re looking for edifying content that aligns with these goals, I’m excited to share my project, Wellspring Archive, a directory of some of the best Christian media I’ve been able to find throughout the years. Next time you’re searching for edifying content, check out this curated list of resources, and feel free to submit your own! Take Heart Finally, some encouragement. God is faithful in His promises. He assures us that He is working in us (Philippians 2:12–13) and that He is patient with us (2 Peter 3:9). So as you reflect on your own doom scrolling, be encouraged: the Lord has the power to turn your heart from the doom and gloom and to teach you to love the things He loves. The ultimate motivation for stopping the doom scroll isn’t just to cut back on screen time (people managed that just fine before the rise of television in the 1950s) or to chase happiness, but to bring our hearts into submission to God. When we deliberately guard our minds against escapism, the dopamine hit, and the fear of missing out and instead fill them with what is good, we not only quiet the noise but tune our hearts to discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2). Thanks for reading Wellspring Archive! If you liked this article, feel free to share it! Share

Introduction: The Two Fools “Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.” Proverbs 26:4-5 Did God really say technology is a good gift? Is the iPhone just a new spin on the forbidden fruit (the company is named Apple for crying out loud!)? Is it even accurate to say technology is neutral? In my last article I discussed the principle of wise moderation, but I think it’s worth exploring the purpose of technology a bit further to see why moderation is even worthwhile at all. If we don’t know what technology is for, then we can’t know how to rightly coexist with it. I see two major ditches which have been proudly claimed, planted flags and all, by two common fools: The Glutton and The Ascetic. According to the Gluttonous Fool… ...all technology is purely good and any technological progress is still progress nonetheless - don’t question it. To the glutton, technology’s purpose is to enhance his life to the nth degree, and every tech company is working tirelessly for his personal happiness. Beyond loving the modern conveniences of this world (indoor plumbing, microwaves, dishwashers, etc.), he immediately signs up for the newest innovation, convinced that each new advancement will unlock a new level of ease and enjoyment. Take entertainment, for example. He loves Netflix because it turns his kids into quiet little angels. There’s no reason to monitor what they watch - he trusts that the algorithm will handle it. In fact, he trusts technology’s suggestions for everything. He obeys his Apple watch’s every command. If he gets a notification that he has a slightly elevated heart rate, he cancels plans and packs his bags in case he needs to spend the night at the hospital. If his sleep tracker says he only got 89% "optimal rest," he calls in sick to work. Of course, he’s already signed up for Elon Musk’s Neuralink brain chip and casually shows off the RFID implant in his hand when paying for dinner at restaurants. To maximize his efficiency, he created a deepfake of himself so he can do two jobs at once and be on two video calls at the same time. And just in case technology ever falls short, he’s backed up his entire personal journal to AI, ensuring that when he dies, he won’t really be gone, just waiting in the cloud for his next software update. According to the Ascetic Fool… …all technology is evil and should be avoided at all costs. To the ascetic, technology’s purpose is to pull us further into sin and darkness. Big tech leaders are out to destroy humanity and replace everyone with robots to reach peak efficiency without the overhead of human biological weaknesses like sleep or bathroom breaks. He is skeptical of every modern convenience, and delivers a well-rehearsed rant each time he hears that another one of his family members started using ChatGPT. He believes that swearing off technology gets him closer to the purest human existence. For entertainment, the ascetic fool obviously does not watch TV. He only reads physical books (of course excluding the modern monstrosities of audiobooks or eReaders). Recently, however, he’s been questioning if perhaps he should ditch his books and opt for handwritten manuscripts instead because the innovation of the printing press put scribes and copyists out of work. He tries not to let technology rule his life. When Google maps tells him to go left, he often takes a few rights just to prove a point. He frequently oversleeps and misses his morning appointments because he’d rather trust his body to wake up naturally rather than letting another technological tool impede on his efforts to live the natural life. Recently, he’s been daydreaming about becoming Amish and getting back to the good old days before cars, phones, or computers. He is concerned, though, that the Amish are a bit too technologically advanced. Desiring to push his logical consistency to new limits, can he really accept the use of plows and buggies? Maybe he ought to dig with his bare hands and walk from place to place. How this will work out long-term remains unclear, but he’s confident that renouncing modern conveniences will keep him holy. Subscribe now Speaking Truth to Foolishness Of course, most of us look at these examples and scoff at the gluttonous and ascetic caricatures, but I bet if you really examined yourself, you might see versions of the glutton or ascetic in your own life. How many Christians, like the ascetic, publicly renounce things like AI and smartphones or have never seen a screen time recap they didn’t lament, but then go home and gluttonously indulge in social media and Netflix because the time wasted at work wasn’t enough? When we misunderstand the purpose of technology, we’re bound to misuse it. If you shouldn’t worship technology or wholly avoid it, then what is the correct response? In a recent podcast from True Magic, the hosts shared a point that I thought addressed this dilemma well: when thinking about what technology to use, you must consider the telos of technology - its inherent purpose, or “what it wants”. In my first article, I said, “Technology, like wealth, isn’t inherently good or bad - it’s a tool that must be stewarded wisely.” I want to clarify that statement a bit. Some technologies, like servers and databases, may be blank slates of infrastructural potential, but others have built-in intentions that shape how we interact with them. Compare TikTok to the Bible app. What does each want from you? As you engage with different technologies, it becomes clear that they are not all neutral or purely good, but also are not purely evil. Determining the telos of the thing can help inform which technologies we should leverage and which we should avoid. Once we’ve evaluated the telos of the technology we’re using, we can move on to how we can use it for God’s glory. I appreciated Joe Rigney’s perspective on technology in his book The Things of Earth. He helpfully points out that technology is a form of wealth, and gives us handlebars to understand a biblical perspective on how to use wealth. He suggests that wealth is good, dangerous, and meant for receiving and giving. His final exhortation is to enjoy the wealth, while not forgetting the giver of that wealth by referencing 1 Timothy 6:17-19: As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life. The gluttonous fool elevates the gift above the Giver, putting his hope in technology to give him happiness. The ascetic fool rejects the gift entirely, forgetting the good Giver who gave him the gift to enjoy. Both are wrong. The right response is given by 1 Timothy: use the gift to glorify the Giver and bless others. So, the next time you’re scrolling through Instagram, pause and ask: Is the content I’m consuming edifying and good, or just filling a void? And when you read the headlines and see a new advancement that feels scary, consider: could we steward this for our enjoyment and to the glory of the Lord? Thanks for reading Wellspring Archive! If you liked this article, feel free to share it! Share

Everyone I know says they are addicted to their smartphone. The messaging around technology today is that it’s an untamable power like a hydrogen bomb, and we just can’t handle it. So the collective reaction is to feel guilt for not destroying and deleting our technological advances (even if we’re not willing to act on that guilt). An example of this is a “new” product category of “dumb phones”. There are varying types of dumb phones. Some are actually just flip phones from the 1990s that you can buy in 2025. Others are “dumb” smartphones with slimmed down features. A popular version is the Light Phone, which looks like a Kindle and the original iPhone had a baby. The Light Phone’s core product messaging is that they are “simple devices with quality tools, designed to be used as little as possible.” Ironically, since the original Light Phone was released, the company has added more and more apps to the phone like a calculator, a flashlight, navigation, and music. The Light Phone describes them as “utility-oriented tools” but I would suggest they’ve simply rediscovered the technological advancements made during the 10 years following the inception of the original flip phones. What’s even funnier still is that Light Phone III just got a fingerprint reader and NFC, which now brings it to the same level as the iPhone 7, which was released in 2016. At this rate of progress, it seems we’re only 5-10 years out from these dumb phones incorporating artificial intelligence - just in time to rid our future selves of that guilty feeling of using “current” tech features. There’s a reason why dumb phones are catching up to our current technology: it’s effective and useful. But there’s also a reason why dumb phones exist: we’re convinced that technology is scary and dangerous. How can we embrace where God has placed us in the timeline of history rather than inadvertently telling Him that He dropped us off about 10 years too late? Subscribe now We know that technology is incredibly powerful but can cause us to stumble. As Christians seeking guidance toward a proper usage of these tools, Scripture exhorts us to exercise wise moderation. Wisdom teaches us what things are profitable for our use vs. what should be wholeheartedly avoided. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight." - Proverbs 9:10 "My son, do not lose sight of these - keep sound wisdom and discretion, and they will be life for your soul and adornment for your neck. Then you will walk on your way securely, and your foot will not stumble." - Proverbs 3:21-23 Moderation teaches us how to harness good things without overindulging or becoming addicted. "All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be dominated by anything." - 1 Corinthians 6:12 "They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved." - 2 Peter 2:19 Like I mentioned in my first article, I am almost entirely off of Instagram. After years of being extremely active on the app, I realized that I’m not good at using it wisely. Whenever I did something mildly interesting, I’d be preoccupied with making sure I got an Instagram-worthy picture to post. Whenever I had downtime, I’d use Stories to curb my boredom, which resulted in hours and hours of wasted screen time. Wisdom tells me that right now, the level of moderation I need for Instagram is very limited use. I only download the app if I want to look up a certain account and I try to immediately delete it again once I’m done. On the other hand, I still keep Facebook on my phone. Facebook’s algorithm isn’t nearly as addictive to me, and I like the practical applications of Facebook Marketplace and Messenger. Your limits will probably look different than mine. Maybe Instagram is a healthy place for you to stay connected with friends and you can easily switch it on and off, but TikTok is where you find yourself doom scrolling, and then realize it’s been four hours and you accidentally skipped dinner. To do a quick audit on your technology usage, I’d suggest asking yourself these questions: Which apps or websites take up the majority of my screen time? Are they helping or hindering my productivity? What kind of content am I consuming? Is it edifying, encouraging, or educational? Or is it mind-numbing, negative, or sinful? Can I honestly say that my technology usage isn’t interfering with the right prioritization of my responsibilities such as taking care of my household, getting good sleep, or doing my job, etc.? In wisdom, you may actually find that you need to take a break from your smartphone for a period of time after reflecting on your answers. But I’m not convinced that’s the one-size-fits-all path for most people. Marcus Pittman puts it perfectly in his article Why Christians don't own tech: A thread on risk, Gnosticism, end times and innovation: How many times have you heard that video games and AI are somehow evil? Or movies and TV shows are idolatrous. As if these things are inherently immoral. This is gnostic to the core. The left invests in new tech and worries about the dangers later. But we have a God who placed us in a garden, not a forest, and he said to tend the garden. Make it better. Grow things. Create things. Build things. And to take dominion. He spared Noah and told him the same thing. After Jesus rose again, it was again reinstated. Go. Teach. Take Dominion. And he gave us a promise that should motivate our investment in risky, new technology ventures: "As long as the earth endures, seed time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease." AI, Video Games, Nuclear, Space Travel, shouldn't scare you. God has placed you and me in this moment with intention and purpose. It is no random accident that we exist in the same time period as all of these amazingly fast-paced advancements. It is our responsibility and privilege not to hide and cower, but to learn how to harness these developments for good. As Christians, we don’t want to mindlessly claim all technological advancements are good by fiat, but we must create and use technology in ways that honor God as we pursue the chief end of man: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Thanks for reading Wellspring Archive! If you liked this article, feel free to share it! Share

The Wellspring Archive Logo In 2025, attention is a currency. Each day we have a limited amount of attention to divide amongst many different pursuits: work, family, friends, and media consumption. As Christians, we’re commanded to discipline our minds to love the true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy things (Philippians 4:8). Modern media will try to convince you that it fits the bill, but the truth is that it’s mostly crude, ugly, and dishonoring to God. Every day, we’re bombarded with ads, apps, and algorithms that push worldly content onto us, and that content shapes our desires and our loves. After all, as sinful beings our natural propensity is to love the things God hates. Through Christ’s redemptive work on the cross and the gift of ongoing sanctification, we can make our media consumption God-honoring. I’m starting Wellspring Archive to help Christians find those resources and steward our attention well. My Story Hi, I’m Becky. A few years ago I started down this journey of auditing my own media consumption. I’ve been a Christian all my life, but I frankly found Christian music very basic and Christian content boring. I was more interested in celebrity gossip, reality TV, Instagram, and the news cycle. The trickledown effect was discouraging: I was finding it hard to enjoy reading my Bible, pray, or engage with Christian media. I also was feeling the effects of the garbage I was putting into my mind: feeling discontent with my life, comparing myself to others, feeling the need to do cool things just to have something to share on social media, and feeling anxious about the state of the world. My husband encouraged me to start small and just replace one thing at a time. I started by watching Christian podcasts on YouTube instead of Netflix. I replaced news articles with business content that aligned better with my professional pursuits. And I almost entirely stopped using Instagram (but more on that later). After over a year of making small changes, I’ve noticed a shift in my attitude and perspective for the better. Stewarding Technology for God’s Glory There are ditches on both sides—mindless addiction to technology and complete avoidance of it. But I believe God is sovereign over everything, including technology. He ordained that we would live in an era of smartphones, AI assistants, and unlimited access to His Word. Doug Wilson captures this well in Ploductivity: “Tools enable us to widen our reach. Tools make it possible for our radius of fruitfulness (now there is a phrase for the ages) to extend much farther than it otherwise would.” “Now, what we call technology is simply an array of tools laid out on the bench for us. Technology is therefore a form of wealth. The reason this is important is because the Bible says very little about technology as such, but it gives us a great deal of blunt and pointed teaching on the subject of wealth. If we learn how to deal with wealth scripturally, then we will have learned how to deal with technology.” Technology, like wealth, isn’t inherently good or bad - it’s a tool that must be stewarded wisely. As it evolves at a breakneck pace, we can rest knowing that God decreed it, oversees it, and controls it. Our job is to use it for our chief end: glorifying Him. Where We Go From Here So with all that in mind, I am hoping to use this platform to share helpful perspectives on technology and how I broke through that first barrier of training my mind to see trash media for exactly what it is. I hope that I can encourage you and provide thoughtful commentary, and together we can bring God the glory by using the tools He has so graciously set before us. I hope you’ll come along on the journey with me! Thanks for reading Wellspring Archive! Subscribe for free to receive new posts straight to your inbox.