Digital Dominion (Paperback) by

Christians are called to exercise dominion in a digital age. Yet our technological world influences us with each notification, app, and upgrade; our habits dominate and shape us.

Digital Dominion moves us from mindlessly incorporating our devices into all of life to mindfully stewarding them in obedience to God. In this book, Jeff Mingee asks five questions to help us apply biblical wisdom to our digital habits and control our devices instead of being controlled by them. Providing a theological foundation as well as clear questions, this book is an accessible primer for digitally engaged believers.

Chapters include:

Dominion
Am I in Control?
How Is This Shaping Me?
Does This Help Me Flourish?
Can I Discern Wisdom and Folly?
Am I Being Missional?

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“For good or ill, the digital world is here to stay. Jeff’s short book gives Christ followers a resource to navigate that world. If the digital sphere has taken dominance in your life, Digital Dominion will help you turn the tables.”

J.D. Greear, Pastor, The Summit Church, Raleigh-Durham, NC; author, What Are You Going to Do with Your Life?

“In the first century ad, the first Christians used the Roman roads to carry the gospel to the world. The Roman roads were created for both military and commercial use, but the first believers used it to share the message of Christ. The internet is our Roman road today. It is not always used for good, but Christians have the opportunity to have a powerful missional presence in the digital world. Digital Dominion is an incredible roadmap to tell us how believers should travel these roads today.”

Thom S. Rainer, Author, The Post-Quarantine Church

“Digital discipleship is an emerging area of urgent focus in pastoral ministry. How do we become faithful disciples of Jesus in such an over-stimulated, often-unwise digital age? How can we make sure technology isn’t using us more than we’re using it? Jeff Mingee’s book is an excellent, practical engagement with these timely questions. Those in ministry or training for ministry would benefit greatly from applying the book’s wisdom in their lives and ministry spheres. We need to be asking these questions and having these conversations!”

Brett McCracken, Senior Editor, The Gospel Coalition

“Digital devices, like all devices, have the power to bless or curse, to build up or tear down. Without wisdom from above and the moral steel to act on that wisdom, we will be cursed and possibly destroyed by the plethora of digital devices at our fingertips. Digital Dominion is both timely and desperately needed in our day. It is grounded in biblical and theological truth. It is also practical and sensible. Read it with much profit and then go and put what you have learned into practice.”

Daniel L. Akin, President, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

“Christians today live in the digital age, with its perils and promise. This requires an awareness of and discipleship toward healthy habits of engagement with our devices and with the interconnectedness of the world. Digital Dominion is a helpful guide to steer us away from two extremes: either total disengagement or total immersion. This issue of digital stewardship is one of the most important discipleship issues of our time. And this book is a must-read for anyone, from pastor to parent to plumber, who wishes to honor Christ well with their online lives.”

Daniel Darling, Author, The Dignity Revolution, The Characters of Christmas, and A Way with Words: Using Our Online Conversations for Good.

Title

Digital Dominion
Author(s)

Jeff Mingee
ISBN

9781914966446
Format

Paperback
Publisher

10Publishing
Topic

Self Control
Audience

Adults
Pages

128
Published

05/08/2022

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Jeff Mingee

Jeff Mingee (DMin, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary) is the Regional Strategist (Southeast) for the SBC of Virginia. He also helps lead the Hampton Roads regional chapter of The Gospel Coalition. He is the author of several books, including Digital Dominion: Five Questions Christians Should Ask to Take Control of their Digital Devices, and has written for The Gospel Coalition, For the Church, and multiple other online venues. He and his wife, Lauren, live in Newport News with their sons Aiden and Carter.

See other titles by this author

Overall rating

4.8 based on 9 reviews

Digital Dominion

The world of tech is still in its infancy and developing further on a daily basis. As it continues to develop and shape the world we live in, it becomes vital for christians to understand the principles that can be applied from scripture and then apply them to tech. The author points to key texts in scripture, drawing principles that we can use in regards to tech. A key piece of scripture found in Genesis 2 is the dominion mandate, which is explained and expanded upon to aid the reader in understanding how it is applicable today. In laying such ground work in an easy to grasp manner, the author then writes about application to our daily lives in a relatable and relevant way. Whilst focusing on the bigger picture of the dominion mandate, the author brings the reader right back to the mirror, staring at themselves. Questions at the end of each chapter help stir the reader to think about whether they really do have control and stewardship over their tech. They leave the reader challenged to dig deep and realise what is really moulding or shaping them as an individual, and to consider what they are worshipping. The book is balanced and points out that tech is a blessing and can be used to glorify God. The author highlights some of those blessings with a chapter focusing on being missional/evangelistic through the usage of devices, revealing that God’s sovereignty extends to the digital realm. Technology is changing fast, so much so that what is innovative today is outdated tomorrow. The author has written this book in way that allows the content to be practical and applicable even as tech changes.

James Edwards

As Christians we believe that all of life is to be brought under the authority of King Jesus, and that includes our use of digital devices. The goal of Jeff Mingee in this short but very helpful book is to equip Christians to exercise ‘digital dominion’ over their devices, applying ancient biblical wisdom to a most contemporary issue, so that these devices do not in fact rule them. After a consideration of the nature of dominion, rooted in the Genesis 1 creation mandate, Mingee asks five questions which take us to the heart of the challenges posed, and the opportunities offered, by new digital technology. The questions are: ‘Am I in Control?’, ‘How Is This Shaping Me?’, ‘Does This Help Me Flourish?’, ‘Can I Discern Wisdom and Folly?’ and ‘Am I Being Missional?’ These, in fact, are questions that can be asked regarding a wide range of activities and raise some of the core issues of discipleship. Drawing on fundamental biblical principles, these questions are probing and will serve to develop the attentive reader’s thinking in an area where few (if any) avoid daily engagement. Mingee is probing, balanced and practical. It is a book to read and ponder, and also to pass on to others who need its wisdom.

David McKay, The Covenanter Witness Magazine

This is a very challenging little book that packs a big punch! Despite the fact that digital media and smart devices have been around for a number of years there is still a real lack of discipleship in the modern Church in this area. Jeff Mingee deals with the question of how we should use our digital devices and for how long with a very gracious and biblically faithful approach. Firstly, there is the challenging question: “am I in control of my device or is it in control of me?” Mingee challenges us to think about whether or not we are glorifying God with the way that we are using our devices. “Better control is not necessarily to use our devices less, but to use them with greater wisdom.” (p32) There is also the question of how our digital usage is shaping us and is it helping us to flourish in our walk with God? This is a key question for the Christian to ask as digital media can be used for great spiritual benefit as well as a lot of spiritual and emotional harm. This then leads to the really challenging question of our own personal holiness and what we are allowing our eyes to look at and our hearts to be affected – are we like the Pharisees cleaning the outside of the cup with our religious posts whilst being inwardly full of uncleanliness in what we consume with our digital usage? “Beware of building a digital profile that looks holy instead of pursuing true holiness.” (p64) The book concludes by encouraging wise use of digital media and the closing chapter is an encouraging call to being missional online, there are so many opportunities in the “digital Areopagus” for missional interactions. In conclusion, “Digital Dominion” is a very useful and challenging book that I would highly recommend to anyone, the discussion questions at the end of each chapter also double–up as helpful reflections for the reader.

Bible Books Theology

I often inwardly groan at my digital usage, (as a social media manager it’s somewhat integral to my job), but this book is a much needed glimpse into the reality of living in a technologically advanced digital culture. I nodded along, underlined, and even welled up, as I considered how I allow my phone, and other devices to control me, when I should be exercising dominion over them. Each chapter has some helpful questions to consider, and this would be a good book to read with others to help discussions on the topic. I have a few ideas having read this of how I plan to take back control, including making better use of the digital wellbeing settings on my new phone and deleting some apps which just waste my time. I actually think every Christian who has a smart device should read this book, and I now want to go back and read 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You again. “You are being shaped by your digital habits. The question is: how? As you recognise the shaping effect of your digital habits, you’re given the opportunity to curve the effect or redirect the trajectory. When you don’t like the direction that your life – yes, even your digital life – seems to be heading, turn around or change direction!” Jeff Mingee, Digital Dominion, page 48

Bethan Lycett

I found this book fresh and fascinating. Instead of taking a negative approach to technology, the author takes an incredibly positive and wise one. Building on the creation mandate to have dominion over all of creation… In a positive way…. We are encouraged to take control of technology, and not let it control us.. To have a book that encourages us to redeem technology for the gospel is superb. A very short read. Well worth getting.

Jonathan Thomas

Helpful little book urging us as believers to wisely think through our use of digital devices in light of God’s call for us to exercise dominion and be on mission. Questions at end of each chapter are great for discussion.

Alastair Gooderham

An inspiring little book that is filled with wisdom on every page. Jeff has taken time to carefully and scripturally examine how we should be wisely using our devices and whether our habits are helping us flourish and honour Christ and others. He leads us to answer five questions about our digital habits, including whether we’re being ‘missional’ with our devices and using our platform online as a way to point others to Christ. This is a book that every Christian needs to read in that we all have devices and likely very few of us have ‘dominion’ over them—and it is short enough to read in one sitting! A great resource for ministry leaders to get their church reading together as well; it has discussion questions at the end of each chapter that will help small groups talk through it.

Abigail H

The theme of Dominion is all around us with the latest Jurassic World movie out entitled ‘Dominion’ and Tom Holland’s bestseller ‘Dominion’. This book was helpful in providing both a theological grounding and understanding of extending dominion to all aspects of our lives, and particularly our use of digital devices and media. It was a very balanced perspective on our digital lives: I expected it to be considerably more negative. I err towards disengagement with digital spaces, but this encouraged engagement for the Kingdom but also having Spirit–filled dominion in the digital space. I loved the practical questions to mull over at the end of each chapter. It has both changed and reinforced various habits as my wife and I seek to have wise dominion over our devices.

David Simpson

A book every Christian should read

Digital Dominion is an inspiring little book that is filled with wisdom on every page. Jeff has taken time to carefully and scripturally examine how we should be wisely using our devices and whether our habits are helping us flourish and honor Christ and others. He leads us to answer five questions about our digital habits, including whether we're being 'missional' with our devices and using our platform online as a way to point others to Christ through our interactions and what we post. This is a book that every Christian needs to read in that we all have devices and likely very few of us have 'dominion' over them—and it is short enough to read in one sitting! A great resource for ministry leaders to get their church reading together as well; it has discussion questions at the end of each chapter that will help small groups talk through it.