It's been a week without social media, and, honestly, the longer I go the more I wonder if I'll ever go back. Sure, sometimes I wonder what people are up to or if I'm missing out on something, and sometimes I miss being able to share with friends and family what the boys are up to, BUT I don't miss the noise, the time wasted scrolling, the frustration it can evoke, the comparison, the jealousy, the "highlight reel" of people's lives.
At the beginning of every year I pick a word that represents some area of self-improvement I want to focus on. I can't remember what I picked this year—and I suppose if I was on social media I could scroll back and find it—so instead I'll pick a word based on what I think God wants me to focus on right now: redeem. Specifically, redeeming the way I use my time.
It started in March after attending a local If: Gathering, a national women's conference. I felt God tugging at my heart to wake up earlier to spend time in my Bible and prayer, prioritizing Him before anything else in my day.
Then in September, I felt like I needed to redeem my afternoon time, that downtime during the boys' naps when I'd fall asleep or scroll my feed for two hours or watch shows—nothing wrong with any of that, by the way, but I knew for me I could be using my time better.
Around this same time a friend was looking for part-time help at her t-shirt shop, which just so happened to fill that afternoon time. And so, naptime redeemed! Instead of wasting away 2-3 hours of my afternoon, I get to spend 4 hours helping friends, visiting with customers, being active, and earning some extra money that I hope to squirrel away for an epic 10-year anniversary trip (I've got another year and a half to save for it ;-) ).
Finally, at our local MOPS meeting at the beginning of October, we touched upon the theme of: Decide To Rise. During the discussion, the Lord convicted me to delete from my phone a silly game called Township—my competitive side had lead me to waste way more hours than I should have in that game and it was time for it to go. Goodbye my little town!
And BINGO! More time redeemed!
That was the chain of events that lead me toward this idea of stepping away from social media. And as hard as it was to cut the cord, it's surprisingly been so rewarding and much easier than I thought it would be. My desire to be more present with my kids has happened naturally. You know what they say: phone down, eyes up!
Speaking of the boys, we are headed to the beach with friends before a much-needed rain comes for a few days, so I'll sign off for now and touch base soon.
Oh, and I'm working on family Halloween costumes. Do you dress as a family theme or every member for themselves? Any ideas for family themes you've done or seen? Or, if it's not a secret, what are your kiddos dressing up as this year? Share in the comments, please!
Filled with Hope,
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