Reset

by Becky Dobie

My husband, Matt and I had our baby girl back in November.

It has been such an incredible time; time I know we won’t get back. However I had found myself spending a lot of this precious time scrolling through social media. Any mothers out there who have ever breastfed know how long you are sat in the same spot feeding your child.

My phone was always to hand, so I found myself opening up instagram and “doom scrolling”. I’d look back at my screen time overview to see that literally hours of my day were spent on social media.

Sometimes I would only stop when my phone ran out of battery.

It wasn’t only the time spent on social media but the fact that a lot of my learning about motherhood was coming from an echo chamber, which was specifically catered to what the algorithm believed I wanted to hear, causing me to compare myself to others and increasing my anxiety.

So…I’ve chosen to abstain from social media this lent.

I found it was not only a barrier between me and God, but also a distraction from the real world, from my baby and my husband.

Social media in itself isn’t all a bad thing.

It can be a useful tool and a great way to communicate. However, for me it became a way of avoiding tasks and an easy escape.

Since giving up social media, I’ve spent my time reading the Bible far more than I ever have before. I have even picked up my sketchbook again and have been drawing: something which I’ve always loved.

I’ve spent more time appreciating this time I have with my daughter whilst she is so small and dependent on me. 

“So then we must lay aside the works of darkness, and put on the weapons of light. Let us live decently as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in discord and jealousy. Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to arouse its desires.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭13‬:‭13‬-‭14‬

So, if there is anything in your life which is causing you to stumble, like social media, alcohol, sex (things that aren’t necessarily bad but can become harmful) then I challenge you to abstain from them, at least a short while, to reset, perhaps for good.

Lord, show me if there is anything in my life which is causing me to stumble, if there is anything which is getting in the way of knowing you more, if there is anything stopping me from being present and alert. May you give me strength, through your spirit, to abstain from these things so that I can know you more and love those around me better. Amen.