Hearing God in a Media-Saturated World: A Study on the Value of Media Fasts for Hearing God’s Voice

2021·1.5 MB·English

by  CARL AXEL FRANZON

HEARING GOD IN A MEDIA-SATURATED WORLD:
A STUDY ON THE VALUE OF MEDIA FASTS FOR HEARING GOD’S VOICE
A THESIS-PROJECT
SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF
GORDON-CONWELL THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE
DOCTOR OF MINISTRY
BY
CARL AXEL FRANZON
JANUARY 2021
Copyright ©2021 by Carl Axel Franzon. All Rights Reserved.
To Christine, my wife, my love.
To my children, Lisbeth, Aurora, Carlina, Christiana, Axel.
Family. Friends. Forever.
Dad, I miss you.
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
- Colossians 3:4
CONTENTS
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS........................................................................................................viii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS...............................................................................................................x
ABSTRACT..................................................................................................................................xii
Chapter
1. THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING............................................................................1
A Media-Saturated World .......................................................................................2
The Hidden Power of Technology...........................................................................8
Media and Distraction............................................................................................10
Attentiveness and the Spiritual Life ......................................................................15
The Context ...........................................................................................................19
The Solution ..........................................................................................................21
Assumptions and Limitations ...............................................................................21
The Thesis-Project.................................................................................................22
2. THEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK.................................................................................25
Definitions..............................................................................................................25
Biblical Background..............................................................................................32
Historical Overview...............................................................................................40
Attentiveness .........................................................................................................44
Conclusion ............................................................................................................72
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3. LITERATURE REVIEW...............................................................................................73
Attentiveness and Hearing God ............................................................................73
Spiritual Formation and the Role of the Disciplines .............................................78
Fasting ...................................................................................................................81
Silence ...................................................................................................................83
Sabbath ..................................................................................................................90
Electronic Media and Distraction .........................................................................93
4. RESEARCH DESIGN AND PROCEDURES .............................................................98
Pre-Fast Survey Data ............................................................................................99
Post-Fast Survey Data .........................................................................................106
Post-Study Survey ...............................................................................................118
Post-Study Focus Groups ....................................................................................126
Conclusion ..........................................................................................................136
5. ANALYSIS OF DATA AND EXPLORATION OF OPPORTUNITIES ....................137
Study Design and Participation ...........................................................................137
The Effect of Attitude and Purpose .....................................................................139
Finding: Improved Attention to God ...................................................................141
Struggles with Silence .........................................................................................143
The Role of Intentionality ...................................................................................147
Reflection and Noticing ......................................................................................149
Positive Effects Beyond Attentiveness ...............................................................151
For Further Study: Deeper than Distraction.........................................................153
For Further Study: How Digital Culture Shapes Us ...........................................158
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Redeeming Distractions ......................................................................................160
Assessing the Impact ...........................................................................................161
Suggestions for the Local Congregation .............................................................164
Conclusion ..........................................................................................................167
Appendix
A. MEDIA FAST INSTRUCTIONS ..............................................................................168
B. INFORMED CONSENT ............................................................................................170
C. MEDIA FAST PRE-SURVEY ...................................................................................172
D. MEDIA FAST POST-SURVEY .................................................................................175
E. FOCUS GROUP QUESTIONS ..................................................................................182
BIBLIOGRAPHY .......................................................................................................................183
VITA ...........................................................................................................................................192
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ILLUSTRATIONS
Figure
1. Participants successfully abstaining from media for the weekly fast .......................107
2. Participants’ perceived difficulty of keeping weekly fast .........................................107
3. Comparison of awareness of God’s presence on fast days vs. other days ................108
4. Post-study response, “I am more aware of God’s daily presence with me” .............122
5. Post-study response “I feel more comfortable with silence” ...................................122
6. Post-study response, “I have a greater desire to hear God’s voice” ..........................123
7. Post-study response, “I sense God’s direction more frequently” ..............................124
8. Post-study response “I am going to adjust my media usage” ...................................124
9. Post-study respone, “I will continue to take regular media fasts/sabbaths” .............125
10. Post-study, “These fasts helped me grow in my relationship with God”...................126
Table
1. Computer and internet access in U.S. homes.................................................................5
2. Cell phone ownership in the U.S. over time..................................................................7
3. Age distribution of participants vs. U.S. population ...................................................99
4. Age distribution of participating adults vs. national average....................................100
5. Number of televisions per participant household .....................................................101
6. Types of devices used by participants .......................................................................102
7. Participants’ rating of their media usage compared to others ...................................103
8. Percentage of participants who have taken an intentional break from media ...........103
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9. Percentage of participants currently practicing any form of being media free .........104
10. Percentage of participants practicing silence as a regular spiritual discipline ..........104
11. Participants currently practicing fasting as a regular spiritual discipline..................104
12. Participants who said they could recognize God’s voice ..........................................105
13. Media habits and attentiveness .................................................................................105
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
A successful journey almost never takes place in isolation, and my journey to this Doctor
of Ministry (D.Min.) is no exception. I am thankful to those who supported and encouraged me
along the way and without whom I would not have reached this stage.
I give thanks first of all to the God who created, redeemed, and sustains me. I have
struggled at times with understanding grace and through these years of study the Lord has
reminded me again and again of his unconditioned love, and that my acceptance is not based on
performance. The love of God the Father, the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the fellowship
of the Holy Spirit have sustained and continue to sustain me.
More than any other person, my wife Christine has been the one who has been the living
epistle of God’s acceptance. She encouraged me to begin the D.Min. program, though we had
just learned we would be adding twins to our three other children. By itself, that reminded me of
her love and support for me, but it did not end there. All through the years, and particularly in
those moments I doubted myself, she reminded me of the gifts I had been given and encouraged
me to press on. She sacrificed much for me to reach this point and I am ever grateful. After
Christine comes our five children: Lisbeth, Aurora, Carlina, Christiana, and Axel. They bring joy
to my life in so many ways and have all found their ways to encourage and support me through
the years.
I am grateful to my parents, Carl and Barbara Franzon, who modeled for me over the
years the value of hard work and sacrifice. My dad, Carl, modeled for me a life of service and I
am saddened that that he did not get to see me cross this finish line. My mom, Barb, has shown
me what love and sacrifice looks like, particularly in regards to my education.
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