Technology, Attention, and the Good Life

What Are We Really Made For?

What if the good life doesn’t come from having the ability to do whatever we want, but from having the ability to do what we were made for?

And what if the good life isn’t found in making a name for ourselves, but in making much of God?

These questions are increasingly important in a world shaped by smartphones, social media, artificial intelligence, and constant connectivity. Technology influences nearly every area of our lives. It affects how we work, learn, communicate, shop, rest, and even how we think. While these tools have brought tremendous benefits, many people are also discovering an uncomfortable reality: we are more connected than ever, yet often feel more distracted, anxious, and restless than ever before.

Living at Altitude

Several years ago, shortly after graduating college, I moved to Colorado. I was young, healthy, and in decent shape, so I joined a gym almost immediately. The first time I got on an elliptical machine, my heart rate shot through the roof. Later that day, I tried playing pickup basketball and could barely make it up and down the court. For days I dealt with headaches and occasional nosebleeds.

Then it hit me: I was living at altitude.

The environment around me had changed, and although I didn’t fully recognize it, my body certainly did. It was sending signals that something was different.

In many ways, our digital environment works the same way. At first, technology feels exciting and empowering. We can communicate instantly, accomplish more in less time, and access endless information. But after years of constant notifications, endless scrolling, and perpetual connectivity, many people begin to experience a growing sense of unease. We struggle to focus. We feel exhausted. Silence becomes uncomfortable. We instinctively reach for our phones without even thinking about it.

Perhaps our souls are doing what my body did in Colorado. Perhaps they are sending signals that something in our environment is shaping us more than we realize.

What Babel Teaches Us About Technology

The Bible never mentions smartphones or social media, but it does speak directly to technology, innovation, and the human heart. One of the clearest examples is found in Genesis 11 and the story of the Tower of Babel.

At its core, Babel is a story about a technological advancement and how humanity chooses to use it. The people discover how to make bricks, a significant innovation in the ancient world. Yet God does not object to the technology itself. He does not condemn creativity, invention, or progress.

The problem emerges when the people reveal their motivation: “Let us build ourselves a city and a tower… so that we may make a name for ourselves.”

The issue is not the tower. The issue is worship.

God is not opposed to innovation. He is opposed to innovation disconnected from His purposes. The story reminds us that technology is never simply about what we can do. It is always connected to why we are doing it. When technology serves God’s purposes and contributes to human flourishing, it becomes a gift. When it becomes a tool for self-glorification, it begins to work against God’s design.

The War for Our Attention

Technology itself is not the enemy. In fact, there is much to celebrate. Families stay connected across great distances. Educational opportunities are available to more people than ever before. Medical advancements continue to improve lives. Churches can share the gospel globally in ways previous generations could only imagine.

Yet many of today’s digital platforms operate within what has been called the “attention economy.” Their goal is not simply to serve us but to keep us engaged. Our attention has become a valuable commodity.

As a result, many of us live in a constant state of distraction. We move from notification to notification, video to video, headline to headline. Over time, this shapes us. What begins as a tool gradually becomes an environment, and environments always form people.

Why This Matters for Following Jesus

One of the greatest spiritual challenges of our time may simply be distraction.

The practices that form followers of Jesus require attention. Prayer requires attentiveness. Scripture reading requires focus. Worship requires presence. Sabbath requires rest.

The way of Jesus is often slow, quiet, and deeply relational. Yet many of us spend hours every day training our minds for speed, stimulation, and instant gratification. We should not be surprised when prayer feels difficult or when reading Scripture feels harder than scrolling social media.

The same mind we use throughout the week is the mind we bring into our relationship with God.

Recovering Healthy Rhythms

The answer is not fear or rejection of technology. The answer is wisdom.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to use technology without being mastered by it. That may mean taking intentional breaks from social media, creating phone-free rhythms in our homes, practicing digital fasting, or simply learning again how to sit quietly before God.

These practices are not about legalism. They are about freedom.

Technology is a gift, but it is a gift that must be stewarded wisely. The question is not whether technology will shape us—it already is. The question is whether it will shape us into people who make much of themselves or people who make much of God.

Because ultimately, the good life is not found in endless productivity, constant connectivity, or accumulating attention. The good life is found in becoming the people God created us to be and using every tool at our disposal to glorify Him and serve His world well.