Kindly, Kayla

Hi Friends!

Today I want to talk about my experience fasting from social media! I felt that God was putting it on my heart to share my experience fasting because in this day in age, social media has become the forefront and has taken over the lives of many people. I found myself spending more time on my phone than with God and I decided that I needed to reset and shift my priorities. God has been so good to me and to be putting Him on the back burner is truly unacceptable. I learned so many things from this experience and God has provided me so much clarity and answered prayers so I am excited to share this with you.

I fasted about 10 days from social media, which does not seem like a lot of time, but it was harder than I thought it would be. I spent so much more time on my phone than I thought so this was truly a challenge!

I decided to fast from Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitch, and Pinterest, and let me tell you, it was tough. The hardest for me was YouTube because I have been a YouTube lover since I was a pre-teen so to not get on it for a week was hard to be 100% honest! I even made a list of things that I would be doing instead of scrolling on social media so that I could have some planned things to do to help prevent me from redownloading the apps. First and foremost I would be abiding in Christ daily by reading my Bible, praying, listening to worship music and Christian podcasts. I also made plans to read more, color in my coloring books, sit outside, workout, and write in my journal. I made it through the fast successfully and I want to share with you all what I learned during that time.

-You Are More Present

Not being on social media truly helps you be more present in your daily life. For example, my family went out to eat on Sunday at Cracker Barrel and instead of me pulling out my phone to scroll while we waited on our food, I was actually present with my family and I didn’t realize just how much of a difference that makes in the conversation. It felt so good to talk to my family without constantly checking my phone. This was also during the week of the 4th of July so I wasn’t on social media that day as well and I had the most fun not even thinking about my phone. We played games, tried learning a line dance, and truly just enjoyed one another. I think my screen-time that day was the lowest of the week and it felt so fulfilling to spend time with my family and for them to have 100% of my attention.

-Days Feel Longer

That week without social media truly felt like the longest week of my life haha. I did not realize that being on social media throughout the day takes up so much of your time. I had so much more time to spend with God. I even realized just how much joy reading the Bible brings me. I am currently reading through the Gospels and learning about my Savior just fills me up with so much passion. Passion to tell someone about just how great and wonderful He is. I also had so much time to FINALLY read the books I had been putting off. I even read 2 books in 2 days. It brought me back to my childhood where I would read literally all day. This was before I had a cell phone so most of my time was spent in books. Something about reading brings me so much joy. It’s so fun to transport into another world with different experiences and read the stories that others have spent so much time writing and working on.

-Less Comparison, More Content

On social media, you’re seeing a lot of people’s happiest moments, and to be truthfully honest, one can end up comparing their life to another person’s life. It isn’t always in a negative way, social media is good at inspiring me to try new things but sometimes it can feel overwhelming to always feel the need to get the newest product or go on this trip that others are going on. By not being on social media I actually felt so content with my life. I am so grateful for this life that I get to live! Sometimes I find myself feeling discouraged about my timeline and feeling behind in life but I now know that God’s timeline for my life is the best for me. God is never late, He knows exactly what you need and when you need it so I am just going to be patient and wait on HIS plan, not mine.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

-Social Media is not a Necessity

By day 3 of the fast, I actually realized just how much social media is not actually needed. Yes, it is a good way to connect with friends and family and I am not knocking social media, I am back on it lol, but I realized that to connect with friends and family you don’t need it. At first I worried about how I would connect with people but then I realized, phone calls and text messages exist lol. I feel that my generation has lost the realization of the importance of actually talking to one another without using social media. We would now rather to just like one another’s posts on Instagram instead of having a good phone call, or even a face to face meeting. If you worry about losing friends if you get off of social media, I promise you that your real friends will find a way to message you and get in contact with you. I realized that I did not miss social media as much as I thought I would, only a few people who’s posts I enjoy seeing on my timeline.

Current Thoughts about Social Media

As I return to social media, I find myself struggling with those same unhealthy habits that I had before the fast. My screen time is slowly increasing and I want to stop it before I go back to my old habits. I am trying to find a balance because I enjoy social media, there is so much creativity there and friends I have made who even live in different states! I have decided to implement screen time limits and a time where I can’t be on my phone after a certain time at night. I also will not be getting on social media before I spend time with God in the morning. I have also picked a day to be social media free every week! I am praying that God will continue to help me have a healthy balance of social media time because at the end of the day, I need His strength to keep me going. I know for a fact that He helped me complete this fast because when I am weak, I am strong because of His power.

I pray that if you decide to fast from social media, you pray and ask God for guidance and strength. I pray that we all can stop letting social media distract us from what really matters, having a relationship with God. I pray that whoever reads this will feel encouraged and know that they are not alone with the temptations of this world that distract us from God. You are known and so so loved.

Thank you for reading.

Kindly,

Kayla

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-11