February 28, 2025 • 27 mins
In today’s episode, we are addressing the real struggle many of us face in our digital age—how technology steals the peace, joy, and purpose God intended for our lives. I had the privilege of speaking with Erick Vargas, Christian entrepreneur and co-founder of Sabbath Space, an app designed to help people disconnect from technology and reconnect with what truly matters—God, family, and community.
What You’ll Learn:
• Understanding the Technology Trap: Erick shares his personal experience with technology addiction and reveals how disconnecting from tech can restore balance to your life and allow you to walk in God’s purpose.
• Finding Peace and Productivity in a Digital World: By intentionally setting boundaries around technology, you can make space for a deeper connection with God, your family, and your purpose.
Personal Takeaways:
Reflecting on this conversation, I realize how often I let technology steal my focus and peace. When I don’t intentionally rest or disconnect, I find myself anxious, overwhelmed, and struggling to hear from God. I’ve learned that reclaiming peace requires me to set boundaries with technology, just as much as it involves setting aside time for rest and reflection. Erick’s message is a wake-up call: if we don’t take action, technology will continue to steal the life God intends for us.
I also recognize that being mindful of what drains me and what replenishes me is crucial for moving forward with purpose. Technology is a tool, but it must be used wisely. When I use it intentionally, it helps me grow; when it controls me, it takes away the clarity and peace I need to hear from God.
Action Step for You:
This week, take a full 24-hour break from all notifications and digital distractions. Turn off your phone, disconnect from social media, and take time to reflect on how this makes you feel. After your digital detox, spend just 10 minutes in prayer or reading the Bible. I want you to pay attention to the clarity, peace, and joy that come when you give yourself space from technology. Let me know how it impacts you!
Resources Mentioned:
• Sabbath Space App: A practical tool to help you disconnect from technology and reconnect with what matters most.
• Previous Episodes: Episode 59 - Stress and Burnout: Consider a Biblical Sabbath for Healing and Renewal with Joel and Christy Peed and Episode 67 - Digital Detox and Biblical Sabbath Compilation.
Connect with Eric Vargas:
• Sabbath Space Website
• Instagram: @sabbathspace
Final Thoughts:
Technology is powerful, but if we don’t learn to manage it, it will take from the life that God has designed for us. Through intentional rest, boundaries, and connection with what truly matters, we can reclaim our peace, productivity, and joy. Eric’s wisdom shows us that we can take control of our digital lives, make space for God, and live more purposefully.
Thank you for joining me today! I look forward to hearing how you will reclaim peace and joy in your life through intentional rest and digital boundaries.
Thanks for listening! Your support means the world. Join our Curious for Christ Facebook Group and become an Insider for weekly inspiration and encouragement on your faith journey.
Want to go deeper? Let's connect—set up a FREE Discovery Call today. See you next time!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome back to the Curious forChrist show.
(00:03):
Today we're diving into thepower of Sabbath with our
special guest Eric Vargas.
We've touched on the concept ofSabbath in previous episodes and
if you'd like to explore moreyou're welcome to check out
episodes 59 and 67.
Episode 59 On Stress andBurnout, a Biblical Sabbath, and
(00:23):
Episode 67, Digital Detox andSabbath.
Today's conversation is a littledifferent as we focus on the
intersection of technology andSabbath.
I've invited Eric Vargas, aChristian entrepreneur and co
founder of Sabbath Space, an appdesigned to help people
disconnect from technology andreconnect with their faith,
(00:47):
family, and community.
Inspired by his own strugglewith tech addiction, Eric
created Sabbath Space to helpChristians regain control over
their time and focus.
With a background in bothseminary and tech
entrepreneurship, Eric's missionis to guide individuals toward
more intentional, mindful use oftechnology, fostering stronger
(01:10):
spiritual connections and deeperrelationships.
If you've ever struggled to slowdown set boundaries with
technology or truly rest inGod's presence, this episode is
for you.
Eric shares his personal journeyof reclaiming Sabbath as a gift,
one that brings joy, creativity,and deep connection with family
(01:31):
and God.
We also talk about the practicalway Sabbath space helps
eliminate digital distractionsso we can be more present.
What if The key to greater peacewasn't in doing more, but in
truly resting well.
Let's get into it.
(01:52):
Welcome to Curious for Christ.
Do you ever find yourself lyingawake at night, wondering about
God's plan for your life?
Maybe you wake up with bigdreams, but feel unsure where to
start or what your next stepshould be.
If you're curious aboutexploring your faith and finding
purpose, then you've come to theright place.
(02:13):
Hi, I'm Alexandra.
I too felt lost, unsure of thedirection my life was taking.
I yearned to understand mypurpose and have someone guide
me.
But I kept telling myself I wastoo busy, the timing wasn't
right, and my lack of clarityprevented me from being
consistent, until I foundChrist.
(02:34):
He brought peace into my lifeand revealed the way to find
purpose, by anchoring myself Inthis podcast, we'll journey
together exploring the Bible togain a deeper understanding of
Him and cultivate your ownpersonal relationship with
Christ.
So open up your Bible, put inthose earbuds and listen up
(02:55):
because God is speaking to you.
He is making everything new andyou don't want to miss it.
Let's get started.
Thank you for joining me thismorning, Eric, and I look
forward to having thisconversation that is so
(03:17):
important in today's, times thatwe live in.
I'm super excited to be here.
Thank you.
Thank you for joining me.
So you have a tech background.
And so I really wanted to startwith that aspect could you
explain what technology does toour brain and.
Why this information isimportant because being aware of
(03:38):
the effects that technology hason us could help us regain some
of the control that we may havelost.
Yeah.
I run a software company.
And with that, I get a littlebit of a behind the scenes
understanding of what big techcompanies are doing to us and we
(03:58):
don't even know it and that'spart of it.
The apps that we use every day,the iPhone, they're all designed
to be addictive technologies tous, like a dopamine hits,
dopamine is just like thischemical in the brain.
That's in the reward center.
And they have designers anddevelopers and psychologists on
(04:20):
staff at these big appcompanies.
Trying to invest all theirresources into getting us to
click or to scroll.
And that's why, that's how allthese kind of inventions, one of
the most famous ones, or two ofthe most famous ones is the
feed.
So every app you'll notice hasan endless feed, and the feed is
(04:45):
designed to make you think aboutwhat's next.
Oh, I don't know what's next.
Let's go see.
Let's go see.
And so that's how they design itto be, addictive, back in the
early days of Facebook, theydidn't have an endless feed.
You would scroll and you wouldreach to the end of what your
friend have posted, right?
But now they'll insert thingsthat might be you know, outside
(05:09):
of your friends or an ad or thisor that just to keep you in the
app as long as possible, sothat's one of them.
And then another one is thefeedback loop of likes and
comments and requests and heartsand all of these affirmations
that they're, Giving to youbecause it feels good to get a
(05:31):
like on a post.
And the reason why is becauseeven from visually it's designed
to trigger that area in yourbrain to say, Hey, I love this.
And they're leveraging ourbiology.
To make us addicted to thephone, and we're just naturally
hardwired this way.
And so they're taking advantageof those things.
So that we're scrolling, all thetime.
(05:54):
Wow.
That is very scary.
Thank you for sharing all ofthat.
I'm speechless.
I'm just taking it all in.
And I'm actually someone who canbe very.
So I know that, but to know thefacts and to know that people
that's their job and that'stheir specialty.
We need to be aware of that selfcontrol is such a great
(06:14):
attribute, but when you reallythink about it, if you're trying
to be self controlled, it'sreally one versus thousands of
people, and billions of dollarsof investment to break your self
control, it takes a lot ofeffort.
100%.
Yeah.
And the CEO of Netflix.
Said, we don't compete with.
(06:37):
Other technologies.
We compete with sleep.
Wow.
That one left my jaw on thefloor because I was like, wow.
They know who they're actuallytheir goal is to steal your nine
to midnight every night.
So yes, you work from nine tofive and then Netflix from nine
to 12.
Wow.
(06:57):
And so in your own life when didyou realize that because I mean
you are in that environment, butyet.
Technology still had somecontrol over you were there any
specific moments when yourealized that technology was
taking over your life and whatdid you do?
Yeah even though we're aware ofall these ways that they're
trying to take advantage of us.
(07:18):
They crept into my life in a waythat I didn't want it to, and
what would happen is my wifewould say, Hey, you're on your
phone a lot.
And I'm like you're on yourphone a lot, right?
And what the problem was isthat, when I got home from work
and I just wanted, 10 minutes tomyself, I would just sit down on
the couch and scroll.
But that's when she wanted toengage with me.
(07:38):
And vice versa, whenever, shewas on her phone and I went, and
so we were just missing eachother, at different times.
That is I was aware.
I was like, yeah, probably onthis more than I wanted to be.
But that was the only littleeffect that I thought it was
having in my life, but it reallybecame apparent when I had my
son who's two years old now, andI remember in the early infant
(07:59):
days what, when he was just bornI got a notification that I
spent six and a half hours thatday on the phone so if you spend
five to six hours on your phonea day, that's 40 to 42 hours a
week.
That's a full time job.
So that is three so out of thewhole year, that's 100 days a
(08:21):
year you're on your phone.
And then throughout your wholelife, it's about 10 to 12 years
on the average lifespan.
Wasted, and I run a company.
I just graduated from seminary,I'm very productive and I still
spend six hours on my phone,what else could I be doing?
And I didn't want to miss thoseearly days with my son, even if
(08:44):
it's just time with him, it'sbetter spent than on the phone.
God cares more about people thananything else.
So we may spend all this timedoing all the things and we miss
out on what God cares the mostabout.
And it's about stewardship of mytime.
Your phone could become anendless pit of time.
Or you could be investing it inyour family, your friends, your
(09:06):
church in the kingdom.
And so that's why that's whatgot me upset.
It's what else could I be doing?
For God, instead of just,wasting my life on the phone.
Yeah, and as we're talking aboutGod, you do have a Christian
background.
You just graduated fromseminary.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It's right here based in FortLauderdale.
It's called Knox TheologicalSeminary.
(09:28):
And I got my master's there.
That's great.
And that's where also youstudied and you were more aware
about the Sabbath.
Which inspired you to createthis app called Sabbath Space.
And when we had a chance to talkearlier this month you mentioned
the analogy of in Genesis.
God created a whole world in sixdays, rested on the seventh.
(09:48):
And yet in today's society, theway our weeks are structured,
it's five days of work and thentwo days of rest or a weekend,
and yet with double of free timefrom work, we still are burnt
out.
So can you explain how you gotinspired to create the Sabbath
space?
(10:09):
Yeah, I was confused because Godtells us to work tell tell
employees to work six days andsee what happens, right?
It's it's not going to happen,and so why are we so burnt out
when we have double of the timeoff that God requires or God has
given us, even before our fivedays a week society and even
before God instituted theSabbath, people worked seven
(10:32):
days a week, it was actuallymostly slave slave culture, so
people would work all the time.
And then God gave, theIsraelites the Sabbath and it
was actually looked down uponthat they didn't work seven
days.
They're like, Oh, they get oneday off.
And and our American societyhere we have five days work, but
why do we feel those.
(10:52):
Still burnt out it was confusingand so that is because, okay, I
start work at nine and I endwork at five, but I take work
with me with my phone wherever Igo.
And that's the problem if I getan email from a customer at
eight o'clock.
I replied.
I get a slack.
(11:12):
I reply.
Because I run a softwarecompany, my developers are
overseas.
And there's a 12 hourdifference.
So when they're awake, I'msleeping and vice versa.
So I wake up and go to the gymat 4 30 in the morning, but
they're online.
And sometimes I'm working at 430 in the morning.
Because they're awake and theyneed a question answered.
And so we're never off.
(11:33):
We're never truly sabbathing,we're never away from work.
And that's why I wanted tocreate this app is to actually
make myself more productive andmore restful at the same time.
So what I decided to do wasfollow what God commands us to
do.
And I work six days a week and Irest truly rest on one day a
(11:56):
week.
And so I'm not working actuallyon Saturday, I use that as a
family work day.
So I might do stuff around thehouse.
I might, take my son out, forsome something special.
But I do kind of family type ofwork, right?
But then on the Sabbath, I'mtruly unplugged, and that has
given me the space to reallywork really hard.
(12:21):
And, do what God did and, poureverything out on six days and
then rest on the Sabbath.
And one of my favorite verses isthe Sabbath was created for man,
not man for the Sabbath.
And basically what that means isthat the Sabbath is a gift to
us.
It's a gift to us.
And it's not a rule that gotimplemented that we have to
(12:44):
obey.
But it's actually a gift.
It's really special to thinkabout it that way.
Yeah.
And I would think that also workhas to be redefined for us
because there's the culturalinfluences.
It's about striving, but when wedo rest work becomes abiding in
him and his strength God createdgood work for us to do it takes
(13:06):
a whole different new dimensionthat includes people that
includes his mission.
And so it's a lot lessburdensome as well.
And think about the messages onsocial media that you might get
on Saturday and Sunday on thedays off.
There's a lot of this hustleculture out there, you're not
doing enough.
You have to wake up at 3.
(13:26):
30 a.
m.
and you have to get after it andthen most people are just burnt
out, right?
Somehow we're still veryunproductive.
Because we're not focused on theright things at the right time.
So work hard and rest hard.
That's how, I like to see it.
Yes.
And in everything we do work forthe Lord with all our hearts.
You've spoken about technologywith purpose.
(13:47):
How can Christians usetechnology in a way that
enhances their faith rather thandistracting from it?
Yeah.
So I would say if technology isa tool for you to utilize then
it can be productive to yourfaith.
And so the question I like toask is, Are you in control of
(14:07):
your phone or is your phone incontrol of you?
Some questions or indicatorsthat you might think that your
phone's in control of you isevery time you get a
notification on your screen, orevery time your phone buzzes, do
you pick it up?
And that's one, again, one ofthe reasons why I create a
Sabbath space is because I wouldbe in bed trying to wind down,
(14:28):
and then my phone is right nextto my table my nightstand, right
next to my bed, and my phonewould go bzzz.
And then I would pick it up, myphone is in control of me, that
shows me that it had power overmy life rather than me saying,
it's not time for that.
I'm winding down.
It's a time for me to recap theday with my wife to pray.
(14:49):
To go to bed.
And that's when, the phone hasstepped outside of its proper
use.
I have all my notification offso that I have set time when I
check my emails or when I decideto go to social media.
But even then, yeah, because ofthe feeds you can spend a little
more time than you would wantone way that we designed the app
(15:10):
to help with that is we havesomething called a devotional
mode and so I hear all the timepeople waking up in the morning
trying to do their devils andspend time with the Lord and
they go to their Bible lab.
They go in with really goodintentions, and then the
notifications, Instagram comesin and then more time with the
(15:30):
Lord and then 30 minutes haspassed and I didn't really do
anything, today, and so Devomode, what it does is it allows
you to customize what apps youhave access to.
So that's on the Sabbath space.
Yeah, go ahead.
So on my Devo mode, I only haveaccess to my Bible app.
That's it.
Everything else is blocked.
(15:51):
So that way I don't getnotifications distracting me
from, my time for the Lord.
That's great.
That's great.
I love that.
And I'd love to talk a littlebit more about how it works.
But you mentioned work hard.
Rest hard.
So I just wanted to hear fromyou.
What is the concept of Sabbathmean to you and if you can share
some of the spiritual practicesthat you personally have that
(16:14):
have helped you find rest andconnect with God in your family.
Yeah.
Sabbath, if it's a gift, if Godsays, it's a gift to man, that's
what Sabbath is to rest.
And a time of rejuvenation.
And replenishing.
That is the time where you know,a couple of things that we like
to do in my family and that Ilike personally to do.
(16:36):
I like to cook and make aspecial meal for my family.
Because I find that energizing.
I like to create.
I like to see people's faceswhen they taste something really
good.
So that's what I like to do.
On Sabbath.
Other people might find cookingas work, but I don't.
So I like that.
And then what we do is we go ona 2 to 3 hour walk at the on the
(16:58):
beach.
And we walk up and down thebeach.
That's me and my wife's time toconnect to dream and my son is
in a stroller and we're justwalking and talking.
So those are probably The mostrejuvenating times on how we
spend our Sabbath together.
And then we try to do a familyworship and really spend time
(17:18):
with the Lord as a family.
We do Sabbath on Saturdaybecause my wife sometimes,
serving at church for half theday.
And so it's not really restful,she's a worship leader.
And so we like to do that onSaturday.
And then we spend our Saturdayevenings, either dinner with
friends or whatever we want tobe doing, something replenishing
(17:39):
and joyful to us.
So good food and relationships.
Mindfulness being present, andbeing in God's nature, yeah.
And part of this, my study ofthe Sabbath biblically, the
reason why God gave his peoplethe Sabbath is because they were
working 7 days a week buildingsomebody else's kingdom and God
(18:03):
wanted it.
one day devoted to building thekingdom of God.
And so one reason Godimplemented the Sabbath is so
that we could be doing that.
And so that's really why I spenda lot of time with my family on
that.
Oh, that's great.
Thank you.
And so the Sabbath space thatapt it has helped you and your
(18:26):
family.
You say reduce phone use by 80%.
That was amazing.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So what kind of transformationcan this bring for others who
use it?
And how does that work?
Yeah.
There's two kinds of ways.
On the one hand yes, it stopsyou from mindless phone usage.
Because let's say, your phone isbuzzing with Sabbath space.
(18:50):
It stops buzzing.
So you don't have thoseunintentional times where you're
just bored and you pick up thephone, the way I like to
describe it is if you're on adiet, don't keep cookies in the
house.
If the cookies are not in thehouse, you're probably not going
to get up, go to the store, buycookies, and then cheat on your
diet, you're just not, you'rejust going to get the apple or
(19:12):
whatever's healthy in front ofyou, so that's one way I
describe it.
But what gets me excited is howto invest your time, I'm excited
to hear that.
Some dad is going to be a betterdad because of it, because I'm
going to invest this time in mykids and my wife and my family
in my community.
(19:32):
So practically how it works.
There's a little bit of a twist.
It's an app, but it comes with adevice and it comes with this
keychain right here.
And in this keychain, there is achip that is activated by the
app.
And what you do is let's sayright now I'm in work mode.
(19:55):
And so all my apps are, that arenot work related are blocked.
So I'm not distracted by them.
And I cannot access those appsunless I scan this device.
It gives a little bit morefriction so that you don't just
bypass it really quick.
Some people might say, Hey,isn't there a feature on your
(20:16):
phone where you can block apps?
Yes, there is.
And my wife used to use that oneit's called the app limit, and
if you're on Instagram, morethan an hour a day, it will pop
up.
But the problem is you bypass ittoo easily.
So she would bypass and bypass.
This thing is that doesn't work.
But let's say you scan thisdevice and your keys are on the
(20:39):
other side of the house.
You're probably not going to getup and walk across the house
just so you can go on Instagramand waste time.
And that's what I mean bykeeping the cookies in the
house.
Put a little bit more frictionso that you don't default to
wasting your time on socialmedia.
We want to change our default tosomething else.
Less accessibility.
Exactly.
(21:01):
Yeah, exactly.
So that would be great forfamilies.
Could we have one keychain permember of the family, for our
children?
Totally.
Yeah, I had somebody say thatI'm going to use this for my
family.
And the kids are going to scanbefore school and they can
unscan after school.
That's really great.
I'm excited to hear How thatkind of plays out.
So there's so many differentapplications.
(21:21):
And that's what I'm excited tohear.
That's great.
And so how can people learn moreabout Sabbath space?
Where can they connect with youand what you're doing?
Yeah, you can just download theapp Sabbath space on the Apple
store, just search it anddownload it right there.
And then if you want to connectwith me personally, either
LinkedIn or any of the socialsI'm on there, just not on
Sunday.
(21:42):
And then you have a website aswell.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Sabbath space dot IO.
You can also sign up there.
And if you have any questionsabout it, you can submit the
form and, go straight to me andI can, answer that and, answer
any questions you might have.
Great.
Thank you.
I put all the links in the shownotes is there any final word of
encouragement or.
(22:03):
Words of wisdom that you'd liketo share and leave our listeners
with.
Yeah, I would say, time is ourmost valuable asset.
And The time you waste on socialmedia, you're never going to get
back and you're not going to sayyou wanted to spend more time on
social media, That's what reallychanged my mind on, how I'm
investing my time.
I don't want to waste my time.
(22:25):
I want to use my time to glorifyGod and build, his kingdom here.
Yes, definitely.
Thank you so much, Eric.
It was great spending time withyou today.
Thanks for having me.
Wow, this conversation reallychallenged me to rethink how I
approach rest.
I love how Eric describesSabbath is not just a pause, but
(22:49):
an intentional time ofreplenishment.
I can definitely tell when I'vehad a truly replenishing time
with God versus when I haven't.
The fruit is so different.
When I take the time to restwell, my imagination flows, my
intuition is sharper, and I hearGod's voice with more clarity.
It's like my mind and And I stepinto the new week with a clear
(23:14):
sense of direction.
Rest isn't just stopping, it's atime of renewal that allows me
to grow, fall in love with Godagain, and approach life with
more peace and purpose.
But I've also learned that restlooks different for everyone.
For instance, my husband lovesto be on the go, go on
adventures, and while I need toset boundaries for my own rest,
(23:35):
I also know that too muchstillness can lead me into
overthinking.
And that's why he's my husband,right?
It's a balance, one that takestrial and error.
The key for me is knowing whattruly replenishes me and making
intentional choices toincorporate that into my life.
God made us all unique andthere's a time for everything,
(23:57):
family, personal time, time withother people.
True rest helps me refocus andbe more intentional with how I
dedicate my time moving forward.
When I prioritize that, I show abetter in every area of my life.
I also love the idea of puttingup barriers to distractions.
None of us is immune to them,and I know I've been guilty of
(24:20):
mindlessly scrolling when I'vehad a quiet moment.
And in today's world, we can'ttruly talk about Sabbath without
also talking about technology.
We live in a time where constantnotifications and digital noise
compete for our attention, andmaking it harder to disconnect.
It's not the same as it was acentury ago.
(24:42):
And we have to recognize that.
God hasn't changed, but the waywe engage with the world has,
and that's why we need to bewise and intentional about
claiming our time back.
Ancient practices like beingstill, praying and reflecting
are timeless.
And I want to be moreintentional about that in my own
life, learning to rest well, toset boundaries and create space
(25:05):
to hear from God without.
All the distractions.
I want to challenge you thisweek to take a day, just one
day, when you turn off all yournotifications.
No buzzing phone, no news alert,no random YouTube shorts pulling
your attention, no notificationfrom Facebook, Instagram,
(25:27):
LinkedIn, just silence from thedigital world.
And guess what?
You'll survive.
More than that, you mightactually Feel more alive.
When we quiet the noise, wecreate space to hear what truly
matters.
So take this time to reflect.
Notice how you feel throughoutthe day and afterward.
(25:47):
Do you feel more at peace?
More present?
Do you have less anxiousthoughts?
Are you more in tune with God'svoice?
And while you're at it, take 10minutes to open your Bible and
read.
Just sit with God's Word.
Read the Psalms.
Psalm 23, Psalm 91, withoutdistractions.
Let it speak to you.
Then I'd love to hear whathappens.
(26:08):
How you felt, what you noticed,and what God revealed to you in
that quiet space.
Send me a message and let's talkabout it.
And if you feel called to learnmore about God, His plan for
your life, and how to live agodly life that prioritizes Him,
I'm here to help.
Let's set up a call.
Just go to bit.
(26:28):
ly for slash curious for Christdiscovery.
And let's talk about how I canassist you on this amazing
journey.
Thank you so much for being herewith me today.
It truly means the world to meto have you as part of this
community.
I look forward to diving intomore amazing topics and
conversations with you nextweek.
(26:49):
Don't forget to email me yourquestions for our Wednesday Q& A
episodes.
You can go to hello atalexandraalvarezcoaching.
com and send me any questionsthat you'd like some answers to.
Until then, take care andgoodbye for now.
(27:10):
Hi, I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
If so, would you like to take 30seconds and share it with a
friend who may also strugglewith knowing God and His purpose
for their life.
Also, leave a review on ApplePodcasts.
Podcast, and let me know whattopics you'd like to hear about
in the future.
Your voice matters.
(27:31):
I'll meet you back next Fridayfor another episode.
Welcome back to the Curious forChrist show.
(00:03):
Today we're diving into thepower of Sabbath with our
special guest Eric Vargas.
We've touched on the concept ofSabbath in previous episodes and
if you'd like to explore moreyou're welcome to check out
episodes 59 and 67.
Episode 59 On Stress andBurnout, a Biblical Sabbath, and
(00:23):
Episode 67, Digital Detox andSabbath.
Today's conversation is a littledifferent as we focus on the
intersection of technology andSabbath.
I've invited Eric Vargas, aChristian entrepreneur and co
founder of Sabbath Space, an appdesigned to help people
disconnect from technology andreconnect with their faith,
(00:47):
family, and community.
Inspired by his own strugglewith tech addiction, Eric
created Sabbath Space to helpChristians regain control over
their time and focus.
With a background in bothseminary and tech
entrepreneurship, Eric's missionis to guide individuals toward
more intentional, mindful use oftechnology, fostering stronger
(01:10):
spiritual connections and deeperrelationships.
If you've ever struggled to slowdown set boundaries with
technology or truly rest inGod's presence, this episode is
for you.
Eric shares his personal journeyof reclaiming Sabbath as a gift,
one that brings joy, creativity,and deep connection with family
(01:31):
and God.
We also talk about the practicalway Sabbath space helps
eliminate digital distractionsso we can be more present.
What if The key to greater peacewasn't in doing more, but in
truly resting well.
Let's get into it.
(01:52):
Welcome to Curious for Christ.
Do you ever find yourself lyingawake at night, wondering about
God's plan for your life?
Maybe you wake up with bigdreams, but feel unsure where to
start or what your next stepshould be.
If you're curious aboutexploring your faith and finding
purpose, then you've come to theright place.
(02:13):
Hi, I'm Alexandra.
I too felt lost, unsure of thedirection my life was taking.
I yearned to understand mypurpose and have someone guide
me.
But I kept telling myself I wastoo busy, the timing wasn't
right, and my lack of clarityprevented me from being
consistent, until I foundChrist.
(02:34):
He brought peace into my lifeand revealed the way to find
purpose, by anchoring myself Inthis podcast, we'll journey
together exploring the Bible togain a deeper understanding of
Him and cultivate your ownpersonal relationship with
Christ.
So open up your Bible, put inthose earbuds and listen up
(02:55):
because God is speaking to you.
He is making everything new andyou don't want to miss it.
Let's get started.
Thank you for joining me thismorning, Eric, and I look
forward to having thisconversation that is so
(03:17):
important in today's, times thatwe live in.
I'm super excited to be here.
Thank you.
Thank you for joining me.
So you have a tech background.
And so I really wanted to startwith that aspect could you
explain what technology does toour brain and.
Why this information isimportant because being aware of
(03:38):
the effects that technology hason us could help us regain some
of the control that we may havelost.
Yeah.
I run a software company.
And with that, I get a littlebit of a behind the scenes
understanding of what big techcompanies are doing to us and we
(03:58):
don't even know it and that'spart of it.
The apps that we use every day,the iPhone, they're all designed
to be addictive technologies tous, like a dopamine hits,
dopamine is just like thischemical in the brain.
That's in the reward center.
And they have designers anddevelopers and psychologists on
(04:20):
staff at these big appcompanies.
Trying to invest all theirresources into getting us to
click or to scroll.
And that's why, that's how allthese kind of inventions, one of
the most famous ones, or two ofthe most famous ones is the
feed.
So every app you'll notice hasan endless feed, and the feed is
(04:45):
designed to make you think aboutwhat's next.
Oh, I don't know what's next.
Let's go see.
Let's go see.
And so that's how they design itto be, addictive, back in the
early days of Facebook, theydidn't have an endless feed.
You would scroll and you wouldreach to the end of what your
friend have posted, right?
But now they'll insert thingsthat might be you know, outside
(05:09):
of your friends or an ad or thisor that just to keep you in the
app as long as possible, sothat's one of them.
And then another one is thefeedback loop of likes and
comments and requests and heartsand all of these affirmations
that they're, Giving to youbecause it feels good to get a
(05:31):
like on a post.
And the reason why is becauseeven from visually it's designed
to trigger that area in yourbrain to say, Hey, I love this.
And they're leveraging ourbiology.
To make us addicted to thephone, and we're just naturally
hardwired this way.
And so they're taking advantageof those things.
So that we're scrolling, all thetime.
(05:54):
Wow.
That is very scary.
Thank you for sharing all ofthat.
I'm speechless.
I'm just taking it all in.
And I'm actually someone who canbe very.
So I know that, but to know thefacts and to know that people
that's their job and that'stheir specialty.
We need to be aware of that selfcontrol is such a great
(06:14):
attribute, but when you reallythink about it, if you're trying
to be self controlled, it'sreally one versus thousands of
people, and billions of dollarsof investment to break your self
control, it takes a lot ofeffort.
100%.
Yeah.
And the CEO of Netflix.
Said, we don't compete with.
(06:37):
Other technologies.
We compete with sleep.
Wow.
That one left my jaw on thefloor because I was like, wow.
They know who they're actuallytheir goal is to steal your nine
to midnight every night.
So yes, you work from nine tofive and then Netflix from nine
to 12.
Wow.
(06:57):
And so in your own life when didyou realize that because I mean
you are in that environment, butyet.
Technology still had somecontrol over you were there any
specific moments when yourealized that technology was
taking over your life and whatdid you do?
Yeah even though we're aware ofall these ways that they're
trying to take advantage of us.
(07:18):
They crept into my life in a waythat I didn't want it to, and
what would happen is my wifewould say, Hey, you're on your
phone a lot.
And I'm like you're on yourphone a lot, right?
And what the problem was isthat, when I got home from work
and I just wanted, 10 minutes tomyself, I would just sit down on
the couch and scroll.
But that's when she wanted toengage with me.
(07:38):
And vice versa, whenever, shewas on her phone and I went, and
so we were just missing eachother, at different times.
That is I was aware.
I was like, yeah, probably onthis more than I wanted to be.
But that was the only littleeffect that I thought it was
having in my life, but it reallybecame apparent when I had my
son who's two years old now, andI remember in the early infant
(07:59):
days what, when he was just bornI got a notification that I
spent six and a half hours thatday on the phone so if you spend
five to six hours on your phonea day, that's 40 to 42 hours a
week.
That's a full time job.
So that is three so out of thewhole year, that's 100 days a
(08:21):
year you're on your phone.
And then throughout your wholelife, it's about 10 to 12 years
on the average lifespan.
Wasted, and I run a company.
I just graduated from seminary,I'm very productive and I still
spend six hours on my phone,what else could I be doing?
And I didn't want to miss thoseearly days with my son, even if
(08:44):
it's just time with him, it'sbetter spent than on the phone.
God cares more about people thananything else.
So we may spend all this timedoing all the things and we miss
out on what God cares the mostabout.
And it's about stewardship of mytime.
Your phone could become anendless pit of time.
Or you could be investing it inyour family, your friends, your
(09:06):
church in the kingdom.
And so that's why that's whatgot me upset.
It's what else could I be doing?
For God, instead of just,wasting my life on the phone.
Yeah, and as we're talking aboutGod, you do have a Christian
background.
You just graduated fromseminary.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It's right here based in FortLauderdale.
It's called Knox TheologicalSeminary.
(09:28):
And I got my master's there.
That's great.
And that's where also youstudied and you were more aware
about the Sabbath.
Which inspired you to createthis app called Sabbath Space.
And when we had a chance to talkearlier this month you mentioned
the analogy of in Genesis.
God created a whole world in sixdays, rested on the seventh.
(09:48):
And yet in today's society, theway our weeks are structured,
it's five days of work and thentwo days of rest or a weekend,
and yet with double of free timefrom work, we still are burnt
out.
So can you explain how you gotinspired to create the Sabbath
space?
(10:09):
Yeah, I was confused because Godtells us to work tell tell
employees to work six days andsee what happens, right?
It's it's not going to happen,and so why are we so burnt out
when we have double of the timeoff that God requires or God has
given us, even before our fivedays a week society and even
before God instituted theSabbath, people worked seven
(10:32):
days a week, it was actuallymostly slave slave culture, so
people would work all the time.
And then God gave, theIsraelites the Sabbath and it
was actually looked down uponthat they didn't work seven
days.
They're like, Oh, they get oneday off.
And and our American societyhere we have five days work, but
why do we feel those.
(10:52):
Still burnt out it was confusingand so that is because, okay, I
start work at nine and I endwork at five, but I take work
with me with my phone wherever Igo.
And that's the problem if I getan email from a customer at
eight o'clock.
I replied.
I get a slack.
(11:12):
I reply.
Because I run a softwarecompany, my developers are
overseas.
And there's a 12 hourdifference.
So when they're awake, I'msleeping and vice versa.
So I wake up and go to the gymat 4 30 in the morning, but
they're online.
And sometimes I'm working at 430 in the morning.
Because they're awake and theyneed a question answered.
And so we're never off.
(11:33):
We're never truly sabbathing,we're never away from work.
And that's why I wanted tocreate this app is to actually
make myself more productive andmore restful at the same time.
So what I decided to do wasfollow what God commands us to
do.
And I work six days a week and Irest truly rest on one day a
(11:56):
week.
And so I'm not working actuallyon Saturday, I use that as a
family work day.
So I might do stuff around thehouse.
I might, take my son out, forsome something special.
But I do kind of family type ofwork, right?
But then on the Sabbath, I'mtruly unplugged, and that has
given me the space to reallywork really hard.
(12:21):
And, do what God did and, poureverything out on six days and
then rest on the Sabbath.
And one of my favorite verses isthe Sabbath was created for man,
not man for the Sabbath.
And basically what that means isthat the Sabbath is a gift to
us.
It's a gift to us.
And it's not a rule that gotimplemented that we have to
(12:44):
obey.
But it's actually a gift.
It's really special to thinkabout it that way.
Yeah.
And I would think that also workhas to be redefined for us
because there's the culturalinfluences.
It's about striving, but when wedo rest work becomes abiding in
him and his strength God createdgood work for us to do it takes
(13:06):
a whole different new dimensionthat includes people that
includes his mission.
And so it's a lot lessburdensome as well.
And think about the messages onsocial media that you might get
on Saturday and Sunday on thedays off.
There's a lot of this hustleculture out there, you're not
doing enough.
You have to wake up at 3.
(13:26):
30 a.
m.
and you have to get after it andthen most people are just burnt
out, right?
Somehow we're still veryunproductive.
Because we're not focused on theright things at the right time.
So work hard and rest hard.
That's how, I like to see it.
Yes.
And in everything we do work forthe Lord with all our hearts.
You've spoken about technologywith purpose.
(13:47):
How can Christians usetechnology in a way that
enhances their faith rather thandistracting from it?
Yeah.
So I would say if technology isa tool for you to utilize then
it can be productive to yourfaith.
And so the question I like toask is, Are you in control of
(14:07):
your phone or is your phone incontrol of you?
Some questions or indicatorsthat you might think that your
phone's in control of you isevery time you get a
notification on your screen, orevery time your phone buzzes, do
you pick it up?
And that's one, again, one ofthe reasons why I create a
Sabbath space is because I wouldbe in bed trying to wind down,
(14:28):
and then my phone is right nextto my table my nightstand, right
next to my bed, and my phonewould go bzzz.
And then I would pick it up, myphone is in control of me, that
shows me that it had power overmy life rather than me saying,
it's not time for that.
I'm winding down.
It's a time for me to recap theday with my wife to pray.
(14:49):
To go to bed.
And that's when, the phone hasstepped outside of its proper
use.
I have all my notification offso that I have set time when I
check my emails or when I decideto go to social media.
But even then, yeah, because ofthe feeds you can spend a little
more time than you would wantone way that we designed the app
(15:10):
to help with that is we havesomething called a devotional
mode and so I hear all the timepeople waking up in the morning
trying to do their devils andspend time with the Lord and
they go to their Bible lab.
They go in with really goodintentions, and then the
notifications, Instagram comesin and then more time with the
(15:30):
Lord and then 30 minutes haspassed and I didn't really do
anything, today, and so Devomode, what it does is it allows
you to customize what apps youhave access to.
So that's on the Sabbath space.
Yeah, go ahead.
So on my Devo mode, I only haveaccess to my Bible app.
That's it.
Everything else is blocked.
(15:51):
So that way I don't getnotifications distracting me
from, my time for the Lord.
That's great.
That's great.
I love that.
And I'd love to talk a littlebit more about how it works.
But you mentioned work hard.
Rest hard.
So I just wanted to hear fromyou.
What is the concept of Sabbathmean to you and if you can share
some of the spiritual practicesthat you personally have that
(16:14):
have helped you find rest andconnect with God in your family.
Yeah.
Sabbath, if it's a gift, if Godsays, it's a gift to man, that's
what Sabbath is to rest.
And a time of rejuvenation.
And replenishing.
That is the time where you know,a couple of things that we like
to do in my family and that Ilike personally to do.
(16:36):
I like to cook and make aspecial meal for my family.
Because I find that energizing.
I like to create.
I like to see people's faceswhen they taste something really
good.
So that's what I like to do.
On Sabbath.
Other people might find cookingas work, but I don't.
So I like that.
And then what we do is we go ona 2 to 3 hour walk at the on the
(16:58):
beach.
And we walk up and down thebeach.
That's me and my wife's time toconnect to dream and my son is
in a stroller and we're justwalking and talking.
So those are probably The mostrejuvenating times on how we
spend our Sabbath together.
And then we try to do a familyworship and really spend time
(17:18):
with the Lord as a family.
We do Sabbath on Saturdaybecause my wife sometimes,
serving at church for half theday.
And so it's not really restful,she's a worship leader.
And so we like to do that onSaturday.
And then we spend our Saturdayevenings, either dinner with
friends or whatever we want tobe doing, something replenishing
(17:39):
and joyful to us.
So good food and relationships.
Mindfulness being present, andbeing in God's nature, yeah.
And part of this, my study ofthe Sabbath biblically, the
reason why God gave his peoplethe Sabbath is because they were
working 7 days a week buildingsomebody else's kingdom and God
(18:03):
wanted it.
one day devoted to building thekingdom of God.
And so one reason Godimplemented the Sabbath is so
that we could be doing that.
And so that's really why I spenda lot of time with my family on
that.
Oh, that's great.
Thank you.
And so the Sabbath space thatapt it has helped you and your
(18:26):
family.
You say reduce phone use by 80%.
That was amazing.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So what kind of transformationcan this bring for others who
use it?
And how does that work?
Yeah.
There's two kinds of ways.
On the one hand yes, it stopsyou from mindless phone usage.
Because let's say, your phone isbuzzing with Sabbath space.
(18:50):
It stops buzzing.
So you don't have thoseunintentional times where you're
just bored and you pick up thephone, the way I like to
describe it is if you're on adiet, don't keep cookies in the
house.
If the cookies are not in thehouse, you're probably not going
to get up, go to the store, buycookies, and then cheat on your
diet, you're just not, you'rejust going to get the apple or
(19:12):
whatever's healthy in front ofyou, so that's one way I
describe it.
But what gets me excited is howto invest your time, I'm excited
to hear that.
Some dad is going to be a betterdad because of it, because I'm
going to invest this time in mykids and my wife and my family
in my community.
(19:32):
So practically how it works.
There's a little bit of a twist.
It's an app, but it comes with adevice and it comes with this
keychain right here.
And in this keychain, there is achip that is activated by the
app.
And what you do is let's sayright now I'm in work mode.
(19:55):
And so all my apps are, that arenot work related are blocked.
So I'm not distracted by them.
And I cannot access those appsunless I scan this device.
It gives a little bit morefriction so that you don't just
bypass it really quick.
Some people might say, Hey,isn't there a feature on your
(20:16):
phone where you can block apps?
Yes, there is.
And my wife used to use that oneit's called the app limit, and
if you're on Instagram, morethan an hour a day, it will pop
up.
But the problem is you bypass ittoo easily.
So she would bypass and bypass.
This thing is that doesn't work.
But let's say you scan thisdevice and your keys are on the
(20:39):
other side of the house.
You're probably not going to getup and walk across the house
just so you can go on Instagramand waste time.
And that's what I mean bykeeping the cookies in the
house.
Put a little bit more frictionso that you don't default to
wasting your time on socialmedia.
We want to change our default tosomething else.
Less accessibility.
Exactly.
(21:01):
Yeah, exactly.
So that would be great forfamilies.
Could we have one keychain permember of the family, for our
children?
Totally.
Yeah, I had somebody say thatI'm going to use this for my
family.
And the kids are going to scanbefore school and they can
unscan after school.
That's really great.
I'm excited to hear How thatkind of plays out.
So there's so many differentapplications.
(21:21):
And that's what I'm excited tohear.
That's great.
And so how can people learn moreabout Sabbath space?
Where can they connect with youand what you're doing?
Yeah, you can just download theapp Sabbath space on the Apple
store, just search it anddownload it right there.
And then if you want to connectwith me personally, either
LinkedIn or any of the socialsI'm on there, just not on
Sunday.
(21:42):
And then you have a website aswell.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Sabbath space dot IO.
You can also sign up there.
And if you have any questionsabout it, you can submit the
form and, go straight to me andI can, answer that and, answer
any questions you might have.
Great.
Thank you.
I put all the links in the shownotes is there any final word of
encouragement or.
(22:03):
Words of wisdom that you'd liketo share and leave our listeners
with.
Yeah, I would say, time is ourmost valuable asset.
And The time you waste on socialmedia, you're never going to get
back and you're not going to sayyou wanted to spend more time on
social media, That's what reallychanged my mind on, how I'm
investing my time.
I don't want to waste my time.
(22:25):
I want to use my time to glorifyGod and build, his kingdom here.
Yes, definitely.
Thank you so much, Eric.
It was great spending time withyou today.
Thanks for having me.
Wow, this conversation reallychallenged me to rethink how I
approach rest.
I love how Eric describesSabbath is not just a pause, but
(22:49):
an intentional time ofreplenishment.
I can definitely tell when I'vehad a truly replenishing time
with God versus when I haven't.
The fruit is so different.
When I take the time to restwell, my imagination flows, my
intuition is sharper, and I hearGod's voice with more clarity.
It's like my mind and And I stepinto the new week with a clear
(23:14):
sense of direction.
Rest isn't just stopping, it's atime of renewal that allows me
to grow, fall in love with Godagain, and approach life with
more peace and purpose.
But I've also learned that restlooks different for everyone.
For instance, my husband lovesto be on the go, go on
adventures, and while I need toset boundaries for my own rest,
(23:35):
I also know that too muchstillness can lead me into
overthinking.
And that's why he's my husband,right?
It's a balance, one that takestrial and error.
The key for me is knowing whattruly replenishes me and making
intentional choices toincorporate that into my life.
God made us all unique andthere's a time for everything,
(23:57):
family, personal time, time withother people.
True rest helps me refocus andbe more intentional with how I
dedicate my time moving forward.
When I prioritize that, I show abetter in every area of my life.
I also love the idea of puttingup barriers to distractions.
None of us is immune to them,and I know I've been guilty of
(24:20):
mindlessly scrolling when I'vehad a quiet moment.
And in today's world, we can'ttruly talk about Sabbath without
also talking about technology.
We live in a time where constantnotifications and digital noise
compete for our attention, andmaking it harder to disconnect.
It's not the same as it was acentury ago.
(24:42):
And we have to recognize that.
God hasn't changed, but the waywe engage with the world has,
and that's why we need to bewise and intentional about
claiming our time back.
Ancient practices like beingstill, praying and reflecting
are timeless.
And I want to be moreintentional about that in my own
life, learning to rest well, toset boundaries and create space
(25:05):
to hear from God without.
All the distractions.
I want to challenge you thisweek to take a day, just one
day, when you turn off all yournotifications.
No buzzing phone, no news alert,no random YouTube shorts pulling
your attention, no notificationfrom Facebook, Instagram,
(25:27):
LinkedIn, just silence from thedigital world.
And guess what?
You'll survive.
More than that, you mightactually Feel more alive.
When we quiet the noise, wecreate space to hear what truly
matters.
So take this time to reflect.
Notice how you feel throughoutthe day and afterward.
(25:47):
Do you feel more at peace?
More present?
Do you have less anxiousthoughts?
Are you more in tune with God'svoice?
And while you're at it, take 10minutes to open your Bible and
read.
Just sit with God's Word.
Read the Psalms.
Psalm 23, Psalm 91, withoutdistractions.
Let it speak to you.
Then I'd love to hear whathappens.
(26:08):
How you felt, what you noticed,and what God revealed to you in
that quiet space.
Send me a message and let's talkabout it.
And if you feel called to learnmore about God, His plan for
your life, and how to live agodly life that prioritizes Him,
I'm here to help.
Let's set up a call.
Just go to bit.
(26:28):
ly for slash curious for Christdiscovery.
And let's talk about how I canassist you on this amazing
journey.
Thank you so much for being herewith me today.
It truly means the world to meto have you as part of this
community.
I look forward to diving intomore amazing topics and
conversations with you nextweek.
(26:49):
Don't forget to email me yourquestions for our Wednesday Q& A
episodes.
You can go to hello atalexandraalvarezcoaching.
com and send me any questionsthat you'd like some answers to.
Until then, take care andgoodbye for now.
(27:10):
Hi, I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
If so, would you like to take 30seconds and share it with a
friend who may also strugglewith knowing God and His purpose
for their life.
Also, leave a review on ApplePodcasts.
Podcast, and let me know whattopics you'd like to hear about
in the future.
Your voice matters.
(27:31):
I'll meet you back next Fridayfor another episode.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Special Summer Offer: Exclusively on Apple Podcasts, try our Dateline Premium subscription completely free for one month! With Dateline Premium, you get every episode ad-free plus exclusive bonus content.
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!