What is a 30-Day Secular Media Fast?

What if the noise of godless media is drowning out the voice of God? Not all media is bad... but maybe the distraction away from God is making harder to hear and see God at work.

This is a journey of a group of high school students who have committed to take 30 days to focus on God through God-centered media. This includes TV, movies, books, magazines, smart phone apps, and many social media outlets.

Here, you can follow their stories, their lives, and their challenges. Feel free to leave comments and encouragement.

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Relate
Respond

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

The Last Day and my "AHA! moment"

Boy, am i excited that it's the last day!!! this has been pretty difficult stuff for me.
so you know what's kind of weird? on this final day, just a while ago, i had the "AHA! moment" that i've been praying for this whole month. kind of strange how God works, eh? i was at my brother's baseball game, but i was in our car because it was FrEeZiNg cold, and i was just thinking. then all of a sudden there was this HUMONGOUS gust of wind that shook the car and i was like whoa. so i had this random thought that God is kind of like the wind-- invisible, but you can see evidence that He's there; gentle, but sooo powerful. that was like my own mini revelation because it's so hard for me trust in a God that i can't see. whenever i have doubts, it's usually fuelled or started by the fact that God is invisible to us. heck- someone has probably already thought up my "aha moment" years ago, but that was so cool for me. it's like all of my pondering thus far led up to this one moment, and it just happens that that's what REALLY impacted me!!! pretty darn awesome. =] so im glad that i did this. i mean, ya, i'll probably hop on the computer tomorrow, but i really havent missed all of that bologna very much. which is super weird! i'm not going to waste my time on Facebook anymore- i've already decided to only use that website on the weekends now, at the very least. why did i really need to kill all of those brain cells everyday, before? who knows? anywho, im still excited that tomorrow is the official end. woot woot! this was sooo cool.

day 30

YAE ITS DAY 30 I AM GLAD I MADE IT. I DIDN'T REALLY STRUGGLE WITH THE MEDIA FASTING PART. HOWEVER I STRUGGLED WITH ALOT OF SPIRITUAL WARFARE. THANK GOD I HAD A LOT OF SUPPORT AND PEOPLE PRAYING FOR ME. I STLL DO ! YAE

Monday, March 29, 2010

looking forward

i watched flywheel tonight and its an amazing example of how God works in your everyday life. it shows how God can take ordinary circumstances and produce extraordinary results in normal life. great movie and its my new favorite.

as we draw near to the end of march, some of you may be thinking, 'whew, two more days and i can watch the office again.' but is that really what this fast is all about? is it just like being grounded for a month and cant watch or listen to media? i believe that this fast should impact our lives forever, not just for a month. i dont know about you, but im going to take this further. if i can grow closer to God without media for one month, why not two? this is my challenge to you. if you want to grow even closer to God, take another month of media off. this month is proof that God works when you focus of him, so why not keep going? please respond if youre with me in this.

So close.....

You all are so close... can you feel it?

So I know what you are thinking... "Only 2 more days and I can watch whatever I want."... really? if you are thinking that, slap yourself... go ahead...

Listen, I know what your emotions are telling you but think about it... I really believe the music, movies, tv shows, and media choices we make are keeping us from connecting with God. Be honest... is your favorite band worth sacrificing your relationship with God? Do you really want to watch something that hurts your relationship with God?

Ok... this sounds harsh but sometimes we need a reality check. Honestly think about the stuff you watch, listen to, or read... does it glorify God? If not, then why would you do it?

That's what this fast is about... I'm proud of your all for sticking with this year's fast... but don't go back 5 steps after coming as far as you have... maybe the reason you needed to do the fast was to get closer to God... why would you sacrifice that?

Keep going... I'm praying for you all!

Sunday, March 28, 2010

what i've learned

soo this month has been pretty different for me in terms of the last two media fasts that i've done. the last two have been about cramming as much christian media as possible into the month to make up for the lack of secular. but this month has been different. i admit i have been reading a ton of christian books :) but i definatly try to balance that with my Bible. i think ive grown mostly in my relationships both with God and with my friends. The growth of relationships is probably one of the important things i've learned from this fast. i've learned that you cant expect to be trusted if you cant put trust back into the relationship. one of the biggest things ive been struggling with this fast was praying to and relying on God. for a while ive been feeling rather mediocre and melancholy. and thats really been bothering me. so egged on by a book i read, i decided to start praying regularly throughout my day. and its been about just everything. haha from my food to my friends ive been praying and i've found that its really helped me. ive grown closer to God and i ve been inspired to go and do things and live my day to the fullest.

Jesus

Hello everyone, this is Jessica here. I am sooooo happy that we only have
another 2 days until the media fast is over. God has taught me to be more
patient with others and to help each other in tough situations. For example, at
school the other day, my friend walked up to me and asked me why I had chosen to
do the media fast, and I told her it was because I needed to focus less time on
media (that's not God-related), and more time maturing my relationship with the
Lord! She had said that I was crazy for doing it, and that it must be very hard
not to go on media.

Please pray for my missions trip group as we leave
for San Fran tomorrow and as we do our daily activities! I am sorta sad because
I will not have the opportunity to have a "I've completed the media fast"
celebration for 3 more days after it ends. But as crazy as it may seem, I am
okay with waiting 3 more days until watching media again. I will have an
opportunity to hopefully connect with other Christians and to understand God's
big meaning for my life!


I saw this really cool bumper sticker the other day: No Jesus No Peace
Know Jesus Know Peace