I recently turned in a paper about time perspectives. According to Philip Zimbardo's lecture, The Secret Powers of Time, the young people of today are spending too much time living in the present. Young men in particular are spending too much time playing video games. I mentioned in my paper that I don't want to be part of that trend, and my teacher tried to assure me that, since I expressed concern for the future, I wasn't the kind of person that Zimbardo was talking about when he was talking about people who lived only for the present. However, this wasn't as reassuring as my teacher wanted it to be.
You see, Zimbardo also said that present-oriented people may know about the future consequences of living for the present, but that knowledge doesn't necessarily factor into their decision-making. That sounded all-too-familiar to me. I know about the future consequences of watching too many Youtube videos and playing too many games. I know the consequences well enough to write about them in academic papers and to dread them. But apparently, I don't dread those consequences enough to do what it takes to avoid them. I still watch too much Youtube and play too many games. I do good things too, of course, but I could do more good things and I could do them better if I wasted less time on things I want to do, like watching Youtube videos and playing games.
Ironically, the games and Youtube videos I like best are the ones in which progress (or at least the appearance of progress) is made. I like watching Youtube serieses (or whatever the plural form of "series" is) in which a stories are told and information is given in parts. I like games in which you can level up and make progress within the game. If I understand Zimbardo's concepts correctly, these would be considered future-oriented things. I find it strange that I spend far too much time in the present, watching videos and playing games, but the games and videos I gravitate toward focus on the future. So where does that put me?
My teacher would probably say that, since I'm concerned about this, my mind is probably mostly in the future, but judging by my actions, I'd say I'm living too much in the present. I'll admit, my concern is a good sign, but it doesn't do enough to change my behavior.
I should probably pray about this. God knows what's out-of-balance in my life, and He probably has a few practical suggestions for how to fix it. It wouldn't be a bad idea to get a progress report, either, to find out how I'm doing in general. Should I be pleased with myself in a "keep up the good work" kind of way, or should I be more concerned about the things that concern me, and spend more of my time and energy working on them? I'm sure God wouldn't want me to feel overwhelmed or get too comfortable. I wonder which of those I'm at greater risk of right now. I should pray to find out.
Everyone needs to find balance in their lives. I can't live entirely in the present, and living exclusively in the future isn't a great idea, either. I'm sure God wouldn't mind me spending at least some time watching videos and playing games, but there's definitely a limit to how much is acceptable in His eyes, and I feel like I too frequently go past it.
It's a good thing that I'm thinking about this because I want to work on my eternal future. I just wonder how much I'm willing to make changes in the present to do it.
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