Facebook Break Up

The drama envelopes me. The toxicity swarms like a colony of bees. The barrage of opinions are, at times, overwhelming. Facebook. The social networking site that I've had a love-hate relationship with for years now. We finally have broken up. It is actually something I have wanted to do for quite a while.. yes, years! However, for one reason or another I have justified having this "people at my finger tips" mentality. First, it was because I had a business I was working and did quite a bit of business through Facebook. Second, it was because we moved and it was how I kept up with all of my friends from "back home". Now? I am just fed up.

I was noticing more and more how addicted I was to this site of perpetual information. Scrolling from one comment to the next, one blog post to the next, and one bible verse to the next. It kept me engaged as I went from one thing to another. If there was a timer that kept track of my day, then I have no doubt my time spent on this mindless site would total in the hours. In a sense, it was becoming an idol. I could sit and read my bible or a devotional, or I could get on Facebook. I could spend time praying for people at night when I woke up with insomnia, or I could get on Facebook. I could spend time being in the presence of my children (really present), or I could get on Facebook. Can you guess what usually won out? Facebook! This is not to say I wasn't reading God's word throughout my day or praying for people. I was still spending time with my kids & husband too. However, if I had a choice, then I was choosing social media.

Borrowed from www.thenationalpatriot.com

The political rants. The endless business advertisements. The strong opinions. The unnecessary/unkind comments to things I posted and/or friends would post. The continuous questioning of decisions made. I began to notice it was all a major trigger for me. A trigger for stress & chaos. A trigger that caused me to dwell on conversations and posts even when I was not on Facebook. Sometimes these comments/posts were not even my own. However, for me... for my personality... someone who has a strong aversion to conflict, then just reading conflicting messages by others was affecting me.

After much conviction, no doubt from the Holy Spirit, then I realized this is not doing me any good. I deactivated my account. So now, with all my free time then I am going to work on some more home improvement projects, read more, be more... present, and if all else fails I can always find a new hobby. I don't like getting bored and I get bored easily. So yes, Facebook was a great distraction for my boredom. Was it conducive for my spiritual and emotional health? Not at all! I look forward to this newfound freedom and to figure out after 7 years on this mind-sucking, social media site... what my future holds. I know that the Lord is growing me in new ways right now. I look forward to seeing the road He will take me down now that my thoughts are no longer consumed with other things, but more readily focused on Him!