Scroll Less, Live More: Rooting Teens’ Tech Habits in Wisdom from God

The author begins by reflecting on how different his own adolescence might have been if he had grown up with the constant access to screens and online content that his preteen children have today. He admits he would likely have struggled, and he notes that even without internet access he withdrew into a bookish, solitary role. The thought of unlimited feeds, influencers, and AI companions prompts him to wonder how young people can keep healthy attention spans and relationship skills in such a setting.

He acknowledges the view that families should simply pull away from technology as much as possible. He finds that approach sympathetic and more helpful than its opposite, but he argues it misses something essential. Drawing on Job 28, he suggests that wisdom cannot be found in the world’s industries, in technology, or in nature. Trying to build a society where wisdom comes easily is, in his view, a fool’s errand. Wisdom is found with God, and to be wise is to fear the Lord and turn away from evil, including the evil that can sit in a pocket. Withdrawing into anti-technology communities, he says, cannot produce wisdom on its own.

The post then describes the author’s larger project. His earlier book, Digital Liturgies, urged readers to see devices as habitats that shape the heart rather than neutral tools. Readers asked what daily routines should look like if that argument is true, and this book, Scroll Less, Live More, is his attempt to answer. It speaks mainly to Christian teens and emphasizes the home as the key arena for change. Its themes include ending the expectation of private digital worlds through a “no-secrets” household, and cultivating a life richer than what one watches. The author also points to the deeper need beneath screen habits, which is a renewed sense of life’s gift and purpose. The final chapter, on living by grace, reminds readers that no one is too far gone to grow in wisdom with technology.

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