The iPhone was first released in 2007. Four years later, 52 percent of American adults ages 18-29 owned a smartphone. Four years after that, in 2015, 86 percent owned a smartphone. Regardless of your opinion on these digital devices – whether they are good or bad overall – one thing is clear: they are everywhere. We ought to know how to use them well.

This is the topic of Reinke’s book, 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You. He does not argue that smartphones are inherently bad or that we should get rid of them. He even includes a bit by pastor John Piper who was overjoyed at how digital devices have been able to enhance his ministry. Reinke wants the readers of his book to know that phones are a tool. They can be used for good but also for ill.

While phones can increase productivity, some studies have linked increased screen time to a rise in anxiety, sleeplessness, and even depression. Our phones are not purely good. Their tremendous computing power and seemingly limitless functionality (There really is an app for everything) gives them persuasive power over our thoughts, our actions, and our time.

It is a powerful book, a bit startling, and sometimes convicting, but very important for understanding how to live wisely in an era that is dominated by the internet.

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