Adventures in the Ordinary: Learning from Pokemon Go - 10 Aug 2016
Pokémon Go has taken the world by storm. So far it’s been downloaded onto mobile devices more than 50 million times, and searches on Google for Pokémon Go have been reported to have outnumbered those for porn.
One of the reasons it appears to be so popular is that it taps in to the very human desire for adventure. The challenge of the game is to find and catch Pokémon hidden in the real world, revealed to the player by viewing their surroundings through the lens of a phone screen. Players see Pokémon where others cannot, as they intentionally search for the extraordinary in their everyday surroundings.
Pokemon Go is yet another example of how our phones are becoming our most valuable connection to the wider world; with apps that encourage us to photograph every moment, maps directing us to places previously undiscovered and the ability to message our friends at every opportunity.
Instead of living our lives in the moment, however, we can easily forget to live adventure, in favour of obsession with how adventurous and extraordinary our lives appear to others.
But of course, this isn’t just because of instagram. Inherently, we all strive for excitement and joy in our everyday lives; those moments that turn a regular day into something worth treasuring and remembering; and those moments are truly worth sharing with friends.
Too often, social media gets a negative press; represented as nothing but a time-wasting activity - and there is a genuine danger that we let it take hold of us, that we become the Pokemon-catching, Snapchat-photo, Instagram-filtered versions of ourselves, rather than the fully adventurous, fully human, God-created, gifted and flawed people we actually are.
"What would happen if we decided to use social media as a way to encourage and build one another up?"
But at its heart, social media is a valuable tool like no other, enabling us to learn, to share life with others - and this, in turn, is an incredibly central part of our walk with God. Throughout the Bible and throughout history, communication between Christians has inspired and encouraged others. In 1 Corinthians, Paul inspires and encourages the church community to keep going. In his letters to Timothy, he speaks lovingly. And thousands of you, reading this blog, would have arrived here through Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
What would happen if we decided to use the social media so readily available to us as a way to encourage and build each other up? There are so many different communication methods at our fingertips; millions could be reached, could be blessed, all around the world.
Our human desire for adventure is best quenched when we feel encouraged that we’re living our lives to the full; when insecurity is replaced with God-given, community-encouraged identity. We aren't products of the technology we possess; it is a tool we have the power to shape to inspire and encourage.
So whether that’s starting a prayer group over Whatsapp, sharing positive moments over Snapchat, creating something completely different or reshaping something completely normal, use social media to adventure and go deeper into the ordinary; with your faith; in your community; to build up and encourage.
This blog is part of our summer series, A Call to the Wild, exploring real adventures. You can keep up to date with the whole lot on the blog or by following us on instagram.
