Put your iPad down… and start experiencing life!

Last night I got a chance to see one of my favorite contemporary Christian bands, Casting Crowns, at a local church in town. They put on a great show and I had a great time.

But I couldn’t help noticing the young man one row up and a few seats over who held up his iPad with both hands so he could record the entire concert. I’m sure he did this with good intent. Maybe he’d watch it later and enjoy the concert all over again. Maybe he’d share a clip of the video on Facebook or Tumblr.

Like I said, I don’t know what he’ll do with the video but I do know this. He never saw the concert with his own eyes. He never even clapped when a song was over. After all, how could he while holding his iPad with two hands?

I see this same thing everywhere I go. Parents recording their child’s school play; or their child’s entire basketball game; or some amazing street performer they run across.

To these people I want to yell, “Put your iPad down… and start experiencing life!”

There’s more to experience in life than watching it go by through the lens of your iPad (or smartphone or video camera). Is it really that important to record everything? What makes your child happier—looking out from stage and seeing you smiling back at her, or seeing the back of your iPad? What would your child rather see after making the game-winning shot in his basketball game—you celebrating like a maniac in the stands like the proud parent you are, or the back of your iPad?

We have become too obsessed with recording our lives and have forgotten how to enjoy them. So do me a favor next time. Put the iPad down and just enjoy the experience. Soak it in and record it with your memory, not your iPad.