Posted on

A Social Media Sabbath

Staying away from social media is like a dog staying away from its bone. Sometimes you drool with wonder and curiosity. Other times you are still, with concern for others (the dog may be concerned who would take his bone, either way its concern).

For me, I missed and wondered about:

people I had been praying for

the people whose blogs I was reading

the people who greeted me each morning

those who wished me goodnight or asked me if I needed prayer.

Relationships done right in the Light of Christ are meaningful. They spread like wildfire. On Twitter, connections with other Christ-followers has grown rapidly. A good thing, right? For me, for them, for spreading His truth and love.

Yes, all good, but was my time there ALL beneficial?

“I have the right to do anything,” you say – but not everything is beneficial (1 Corinthians 6:12).

Jesus graciously whispered such questions. The first few weeks away were hard, I will admit. At times, I didn’t know what to do with myself. I began to read more, but I missed blogging and the interaction online.

I am almost embarrassed to say I felt an emptiness.

After the initial two weeks, my spirit settled into His peace. My morning routine with Jesus did not change. It simply became more focused on HIM.

Many of us describe our morning time as time designated for God, our quality time with Heaven’s High Priest.

Yet it wasn’t until I deleted Twitter from my home screen to obey the Lord that my eyes opened to what I was missing with Jesus:

sitting at His feet, surrendering the daily muck … the lack of patience, the desire to plan the upcoming talks, the brokenness He helped me repair … then He led me deeper.

Am I whole, Lord? Help me lay down my life, the one You saved. Open me and fill me, Lord, with what You want the women at camp to hear.

Listening for His slightest whisper, waiting for my mind to receive His thoughts, a gentle stretching of my soul by His hands.

Pliable. Clay. Unrestricted.
Molding, shaping.

I awoke one morning with a vision of me dressed in a granny outfit. From the Lord, it was to be added to the preparation for the retreat.

grancassiequilting

My sister in Christ, Karen joined me at Camp Sonrise. Ministering together, Karen led worship and shared her story of healing that included her great grandmother.

karen'sstory

Friends, I am only being honest. I am not sure I would have “noticed” (Lord, forgive me) His message about enhancing our talk with the acting if I wasn’t on this sabbath. If I did notice it, would I have fully grasped its importance to Him?

grancassiepraying

While on social media, our eyes tend to be drawn to what others are posting. Beyond that, our eyes and egos get tangled when we see someone is writing to us in a comment or shared a post.

When in ALL time, our eyes shall be fixed on our Author and Perfecter of Faith (Hebrews 12:2).

Jesus blessed me as I gave Him the time He deserved, for He is more than worthy.

Feeling close to Jesus is like being a new born baby precious in His sight, nuzzled to His chest, sensing the pulse of His life into yours.

In receiving Him, the hunger grew for His truth, the need for His bread of life expanded. My focus on His Word helped me prepare to serve, helped my soul explode with thankfulness and praise, and only left me yearning for more.

Because my bucket was full, I had more to give to my family before I left for a string of days. Jackson was turning 12 the day I left town, so we celebrated in stages beforehand.

cake12

antmanJackson

I learned (again) how a regular break from social media is essential. In my case, if I don’t take regular breaks, my time on social media multiplies.

Will you join me in multiplying time with Jesus/time in His Word and lessening our time on social media?

How do you make boundaries with your time spent online? Has any event caused you to reconsider your social media and/or blogging presence? I look forward to reading your comments.

All photos in this post are mine. And today I link up with #TellHisStory. If you want to add a blog to this linkup. Visit https://www.marygeisen.com

~~~

Good Tuesday to you!

It’s been a long while since I have posted. Thank you and welcome to all the new readers who have gathered in my absence.

I missed blogging.

This week I will post more as He reveals His messages from the retreat.

If you missed it, there is a new #poem Angelic Help at https://faithhopeandpoetry.blog

If you need prayer, please feel free to ask. At the beginning of each month, I create a new prayer list.

If this post touched you (as I know many of us struggle with balancing social media in our lives), please share.

Have a wonder-full day in the Lord.

In Christ,

Julie

 

34 thoughts on “A Social Media Sabbath”

  1. Juile,

    You are so amazing job on that picture On Oct 2, 2018 8:22 AM, “Julie Dibble, Speaker and Author” wrote:

    > juliedibblewrites posted: “Staying away from social media is like a dog > staying away from its bone. Sometimes you drool with wonder and curiosity. > Other times you are still, with concern for others (the dog may be > concerned who would take his bone, either way its concern). For me,” >

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

      1. You’re most welcome Julie your writing is wonderful as always I’m truly proud of you and if you feel rusty it certainly doesn’t show fantastic as always my sister.

        Liked by 1 person

  4. Hi Julie! I have been off social media for almost 2 years now and it was the best decision I’ve ever made. I don’t have a blog or constant contact with people, so it was not a big deal, but there were many friends and family members who enjoyed seeing my children, since we live so far away from our home. I kept the Facebook messenger app so I could stay in contact with them. I don’t have Instagram, Twitter, nothing. It’s glorious. I do have a slight addiction to Pinterest though, ha! Anyways, I no longer feel the need to “keep up with the Joneses” or have everything look perfect. I can “just be,” and focus on the relationship with my family and friends who are present. Thank you for your writing! I always enjoy it.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Oh yes, Kelly! I remember you telling me this. Oh my! It was two years ago I first spoke to the MOPS group because I will be returning this month for the third time. I am thankful to Jesus for leading us where He knows we need to be. You are welcome for my writing, though I cannot take all the credit.

      Like

      Reply

  5. Hi Julie. Great post. We do have to keep the balance of God first, responsibilities following in His order. God help us all. One app that I have found so helpful is the Give Him 15, by Dutch Sheets. It tells us what to pray for our Nation’s greatest needs for that day creating a unity of Spirit. Instead of spending so much time hearing Media reports that can be taxing, we can read God’s solution for the need, pray it, declare it and expect it. I’m spreading the word for this crucial time of need for the body of Christ and our nation. Right now there is a 40 day prayer assignment until election day as we continue to turn the nation through prayer, humility, love and peace…true shalom, wholeness peace that Jesus died to give us. Thanks for your obedient example.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thank you so much Patti. It is a blessing to know others are leaning into Him first. Your info about the app is helpful. I will make note to share this on Facebook. Have a blessed day in the Lord.

      Like

      Reply

      1. Thanks Julie. I so appreciate that. Such a crucial time to pray and walk in holiness and power and love.

        Like

  6. Julie, I will be praying for you as you speak
    at the retreat. I have been less
    interested in going on Facebook
    lately also I am excited to hear how eliminating
    social media has helped you to draw nearer to Jesus.
    Love, Lori

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  7. Oh thank you so much for prayers! The retreat is over and overwhelmed me. His Spirit flooded and covered the place. I will blog more this week about it. May He bless you with rest and comfort dear Lori.

    Like

    Reply

  8. Thankful for our friendship. I admit I did wonder where you went off to.
    Glad to see you back but understand the need for social media break. I took one over the summer where I only entered contests sweepstakes and giveaways.
    I am back to blogging doing a blogtober kind of thing and it allowed me time to reflect and be thankful for the ones who stood by and didn’t give up while I was gone. I am glad to see your granny photo it was a great speech I am sure.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Awww Amanda, thankful how He brought us together at that speaking conference. Thankful too for our friendship. You have helped me so much, more than you even know with wisdom you share about life. Have a wonderful night with your people 🙂

      Like

      Reply

  10. Dear Julie,
    Thank you for sharing with us your obedience to the Lord this past month! I have found that it truly does make such a difference to come away with Him when He calls us to those breaks. It’s not always easy, as you expressed, I can still feel the sting of “missing out” on what’s happening, but yet what Jesus brings to me in that time is so much fuller than anything I may have missed in the process. Just recently I “missed” being able to join the write31day challenge, as God had spoken “no” to me again this year. But He is so wise, and He knows the timing and the fullness that He wants to bring to us in our days. So thankful to hear about some of the ways that God blessed you at the retreat! I love that He gave you creative expressions through drama also! Blessings and hugs dear sister!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. I so appreciate your sharing this with me. He is so wise and perfect in every way. We are human. We are sisters. We can pray for each other through such times. Thank you for the kind words about the retreat. There is more to blog about that as He makes it clear. Hugs right back to you.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  11. Julie, YES!
    We so need healthy boundaries in our lives, even though honoring them (especially regarding social media!) can be so challenging! Thanks for this testimony of God’s faithfulness! And it’s good to hear your voice again.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  14. Julie, it’s encouraging to read stories like yours of what happens when people follow God’s lead and unplug from social media for awhile. I love how God filled that initial emptiness you felt with His peace. As for boundaries, I don’t use social media aps on my phone, I’m not on Facebook at all, and I try (but don’t always succeed) to only check the other platforms at a few set times each day. What I need to work on most is allowing a search for one specific thing to turn into 30 minutes of wandering around online. Glad to be your neighbor at #TellHisStory this week.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thank you so much Lois. Yes, I like your idea of 30 minutes total at one time. Time can roll so quickly. I have a busy afternoon as the boys will be home. I will check back a bit later to read your post at #TellHisStory.

      Like

      Reply

  15. This is a deep truth! Thank you for taking the break from social media and teaching us from it. I have been praying about this, as well, wondering how to find the right balance. It is very fulfilling when you are connected with other Christians, but… the ministry should never be bigger in my life than Jesus. I’m thinking of setting up a schedule for myself and then whatever I can accomplish during my allotted time, is it. When I run out of time, it’s over. I think that may work best for me. I appreciate your encouragement to keep Jesus first! God bless you again and again!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  16. This was a brave undertaking and I am longing to do it myself. I am pondering a blog post about social media and it’s role in my life. I am stretched thin right now and I feel like social media is another drain on my time and energy- yet there is much good on it too. Thank you for stepping out and also sharing your insights.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment