How to Missional on Your Phone (Even if You’re Not a Gamer)
I still remember getting my first smart phone after my second child was born and being amazed by the fact that I could touch the screen and it would actually respond – sure beats a flip phone!
It doesn’t feel that long ago, but in one short decade there have been so many rapid changes in the digital realm. Now, my generation Alpha children live in a world where they cannot comprehend what life must have looked like before the internet.
It makes me wonder: as followers of Christ, are we putting enough effort into adapting to these changing times? Are we intentionally seeing our phones as portals to online spaces where God is sending us to actively engage in His missional work? If the next generation is most readily engaged in online spaces, how can we respond as communities of believers to meet them where they are?
Entering Their World
It goes without saying that we need to encourage young people to meet in person and enjoy the incomparable experience of being in physical fellowship with one other. In addition to this, however, are we willing to enter their digital spaces?
We need to stretch our imagination about how we can use our phones and laptops to be a light in a dark online world. Digital platforms offer unprecedented access to marginalized and even unreached demographics. It would be a massive lost opportunity if we didn’t see the internet as a real neighbourhood for living a missional life.
Finding Hope in Digital Sanctuaries
There is incredible hope in seeing how God is already at work bringing redemption into online spaces. Generation Z and Millennials are building massive, deeply connected faith communities on gaming platforms and social media. They are creating liminal spaces that are safe and welcoming for anyone to ask questions about God and faith.
In these digital sanctuaries, the Church is acting as a beautiful foretaste of the Kingdom of God, and the reach is limitless. I’ve heard amazing testimonies of how young people are sharing about Jesus to friends all over the globe while playing first-person shooter games – this is a skill I likely will not be able to develop in my middle age!
They are creating spaces for Bible study online with individuals that would likely never find themselves in a traditional church service. There are miraculous faith conversations happening in the most unlikely of online spaces, proving that God isn’t held back by any kind of barriers.
From Consumers to Creators
As communities of faith, we can encourage the next generation to bravely create meaningful space for faith engagement during the time they spend online. The online world is not something the next generation can avoid, but it’s a place where they can thrive as followers of Christ as they follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.
We can exhort one another to not just be consumers in the digital world, but to be creators that reflect the powerful, loving image of our Creator God.
How can you use the time you spend on your phone to make much of God this week? And can you encourage your faith community to do the same?
Rev. Dr. Sarah Han
Assistant Professor of Pastoral Ministry and Director of the Tyndale Centre for Pastoral Imagination at Tyndale University
