Josh Benner

Tag: TED talk

  • Best of 2018. #3 Cell phones and the cost of reliving the moment

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    As 2018 comes to a close, I am sharing some of my top posts from this year. 

    Sometimes we get so caught up in trying to relive the moment that we don’t really live it the first time. (more…)

  • Cell phones and the cost of reliving the moment

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    Sometimes we get so caught up in trying to relive the moment that we don’t really live it the first time.

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    I was watching Evel Live Sunday night, when daredevil Travis Pastrana was breaking some of Evel Knievel’s records. The culmination of the event was Pastrana taking a ramp and jumping the fountains at Ceasar’s Palace, something Knievel was seriously injured attempting in 1967.

    Look at this picture.

    It’s like a Where’s Waldo for anyone who’s actually watching without looking at this stunt through a screen.

    We miss out on so much because we get so focused on trying to capture moments that I worry we don’t really live them at the time. I’m not saying this to judge. I can be terrible with this.

    I love photography and capturing pictures. And obviously there’s nothing wrong with pictures. But I feel like our culture (especially my generation and the younger generation), if we don’t have some sort of video or photo of commemorating an event, it’s almost not worth doing. And thats’ a sad thing.

    For the people who were at Evel Live, how much time will they really spend rewatching their video? I’m sure they’ll share it on Facebook and Instagram. I’m sure it’ll get likes. But then more things will get shared, and people will forget. And you’ll forget.

    There are some great moments where a photo or video will just never do it justice. There are some things that will always be better preserved as a memory. I remember one time when I was in seminary. There was a lockdown on campus (someone had robbed a nearby hotel and there was concern he had come onto campus). I was in class at the time and so the professor had us exit and wait for the all clear in a teacher’s lounge. So what do a bunch of people in seminary do during a lockdown?

    We sang hymns. There were a bunch of hymnals in the teachers lounge and we sang various songs. But the one that I remember from that night is “It is well,” one of the most popular Christian hymns in the English language. I don’t have a video of it. I don’t have the audio of it. But to me, the best rendition I’ve ever heard of that song will always be with my class that night.

    Was it really that great? Probably not. But in my memory, it sounded almost like an angelic chorus.

    Sometimes things are better as memories.

    I watched a TED talk a couple weeks ago called “Hello my name is Alecia and I’m a recovering photoholic.” I think she hits the nail on the head when she says that a big part of our obsession with photos isn’t always about capturing a moment for ourselves, but that it’s taking a photo to share on social media just to show people we were there.

    Smart phones are an incredible tool that would have been the pride of virtually all of human history. It’s like something out of the future that we have constant connection to the world, news, information, and entertainment in a device that fits in our pocket.

    There are rising rates of depression, loneliness, and suicidal thoughts in teenagers and some researchers believe that smart phones are part of the reason in this spike. Smart phones should bring freedom but they often bring self imposed tyranny into our lives. Constantly needing to broadcast ourselves, our thoughts, our pictures and videos. The likes we receive giving us small hits of dopamine, and we get addicted and need more and more.

    But it’s not helping us, it’s hurting us.

    My point isn’t that we shouldn’t have photos or videos of anything. But do we need them of everything? I see friends who have portraits taking of their kids for a first birthday. Obviously that makes sense. Little kids grow up fast and commemorating moments. For me, I can’t imagine not having photos of my wedding day.

    But are the photos we take usually of monumental events?

    I’m also not saying that photos are only worth taking on a special occasion. Nor am I judging because I’m terrible with how much time I spend on my phone. It’s something where I see that I need to personally do better. I’ve been trying to do better in the evening at putting my phone away. I’ve deleted certain apps from my phone where I’m prone to spend a lot of time.

    I think we need to evaluate the roles that cell phones and technology are playing in our daily lives. I think a good starting place is for us to take more time living in the moment.

    Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.

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  • The little moments that change our lives

    I came across a TED talk from 2010 today entitled “Everyday Leadership” by Drew Dudley.

    His talk is based on an interesting premise.

    I worry sometimes that we spend so much time celebrating amazing things that hardly anybody can do, that we’ve convinced ourselves those are the only things worth celebrating. We start to devalue the things we can do every day.

    Dudley goes on to tell a story from his college years. He was talking to incoming students and happened to spark a conversation between a young man and woman. The young woman had felt very unsure about if she was ready for college, and was looking to quit.

    Her interaction with Dudley helped to break the tension.

    And in another twist of fate, the young woman would go on to date (and later marry) the young man Dudley had introduced her to.

    And he had no idea!

    It wasn’t until graduation when the young woman approached Dudley and told him about that moment (which he didn’t even recall). None of them could have ever imagined at the time, but that would be one of the most significant days in that young woman’s life.

    We never know the impact that we have on people. We never know how a seemingly small event can be a boulder in a pond that sends the water ripping throughout the rest of our lives.

    We do tend to idolize the people who are at the top who are really “making a difference” and overlook the life changing impact we can have on those with whom we interact on a daily basis. And if influencing one person isn’t something we can appreciate as being special and transformational, then why would we deserve to influence many?

    To influence one is to influence many because the one person impacts lives who impact lives. The ripples continues to form.

    Some moments are big moments and we know they’re big moments at the time. Getting married. Other moments are big moments that we didn’t necessarily realize were big moments when they happened (initially meeting that person who would become your spouse). May we appreciate the beauty of the “little” things.

    Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.