No Hack for Holiness

Speed Steals Before It Kills

In our constant dopamine loop we forget what matters most, and the day's opportunities are lost forever (Jas. 4:17).

It seems like every time I look up there's a new gadget, gizmo, or platform being shoved at me as the solution to all my problems. The world is loud on purpose. It’s engineered to scatter your mind, arrest your attention, and hollow out your heart through addiction. It doesn't start out that way, of course. When stress begins to rise, or you hit a wall at work, or plain old boredom sets in, we grab at small distractions with breakneck speed—YouTube clips, headlines, soundbites, text threads, a new tweet, or a "quick" round of Candy Crush. They might feel like relief—just a little bump to ease the weight of uncertainty or "break up the day,” but eventually all the scrolling and skimming and swiping adds up. In our constant dopamine loop we forget what matters most, and the day's opportunities are lost forever (Jas. 4:17).

Paul said, “Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:15–16). The devil doesn't need you to be addicted to porn before you belong to him. He just needs you to be idle, distracted, and numb—that's good enough.

Technique Isn’t Enough

Self-help tricks aren’t deep enough to withstand the spiritual and cultural chaos of our age.

Some of the world has woken up to the distressing outcomes of uninhibited 24/7 media access. They see it as a bad idea for the same reason it’s a bad idea for someone like me who, let's say, "struggles with portion control," to go to an all-you-can-eat buffet. Not quite what Paul meant by "buffet my body daily" (1 Cor. 9:27). I digress. Though the world sees the problem, its answer is always rooted in technique: Delete the app! Monitor your screen time! Detox from dopamine! Honestly, yes—those may help. But stopping isn’t the same as starting. What I mean is self-help tricks (psychological techniques, tech detoxes, habit-hacks) aren’t deep enough to withstand the spiritual and cultural chaos of our age.

Paul put it this way: “That, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self...and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth” (Eph. 4:22–24).

You don’t just quit scrolling; you replace it with reading Scripture. You don’t just quit self-soothing; you start praying. Technique can restrain you, but actively drawing near to Christ truly changes you (Rom. 12:1-2; Jas. 4:8).

The One Goal That Holds Still

Jesus gives one fixed target—Himself: “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (Jn. 14:6).

The headshrinkers will tell you to “choose a goal” and hold on for dear life. But the goals they offer shift like sand—career, influence, education, even nobler projects and priorities (family, community service, personal health)—they’re all confined to this earth and produce earthly benefits: “For bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things” (1 Tim. 4:8).

Jesus gives one fixed target—Himself: “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (Jn. 14:6). To pursue Him is to reorder every priority: “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33). Paul carried that same line forward with his own resolve: “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14).

One goal doesn’t fade or change with time. One goal will never disappoint. Christ Himself. You can’t TED talk, self-optimize, or “Tony Robbins” your way to Heaven.

Spiritual Athleticism

Real, meaningful spiritual conditioning is found in the simple knowledge and daily application of God's Word.

Paul didn’t just say, "bear down and believe harder.” He spoke of real training: “Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave” (1 Cor. 9:25–27).

Real spiritual conditioning isn’t found through in life-hacks or passive, emotional, "better-felt-than-told" experiences, or sipping Ayahuasca.

It’s found in the simple knowledge and daily application of God's Word. That's where we encounter Him, and there's no alternative or shortcuts to...

• Daily Bible reading and prayer (Acts 17:11).

  
  

• Worshiping weekly with God’s people (Heb. 10:24–25).

  
  

• Fleeing lust and pursuing righteousness (2 Tim. 2:22).

  
  

• Serving others through Christ (Gal. 5:13).

  
  

• Suffering pain and persecution for Christ's sake (Jas. 1:2–4).

These practices aren’t busywork; they’re God’s chosen means to strengthen our faith and ready us for the battles ahead. Think of it as endurance training, building the muscle of obedience. And yes, it will be costly—every worthwhile discipline always is if we desire real results: maturity that stands, a clean conscience, and a hope that will not collapse when the heat rises (Heb. 6:10-11; 10:35-39). Best of all: the glory to come far outweighs the pain that prepares us for it.

Look to Glory

Noise, toys, and ploys promise escape but deliver emptiness...and worse. Diseased with triviality, we lose our appetite for true food and true drink (Jn. 6:55)

Jesus never lied to His followers about the cost: “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me” (Matt. 16:24).

That means lost reputation. Lost comfort. Lost validation from the world, and persecution and pain instead. But what you gain is eternal: “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison” (2 Cor. 4:17).

Noise, toys, and ploys promise escape but deliver emptiness...and worse. Diseased with triviality, we lose our appetite for true food and true drink (Jn. 6:55), trapped in the inertia of meaningless habits and activities, until we become just another one of Satan's trophies.

I think Lewis got it right—that many will have an "awful clarity" upon arriving in Hell, having spent most of their lives "doing neither what they ought nor what they liked." No one will ever regret spending their days serving Christ, in this life or the next. He demands everything (and deserves nothing less), but gives more than you can imagine (Eph. 1:3; 3:20).

The call of the Gospel isn’t to tinker with your calendar or life-hack your way into a "spiritual lifestyle." Techniques for restraint and habit changes can help you along the way, but they aren’t the end. They can’t save you. The call is far deeper: to love God with your whole heart, and pursue Christ through the daily disciplines He modeled and commands. Die to self, and to walk in obedience. That path will cost you, but it will also transform you. When all is said and done, the reward and glory of Heaven will far outweigh every loss and surpass every pain.