Where did it go?

I'm wondering where the time went, it literally seemed like last week or so when I started the fast and now it has been 18 days. Personally it has been smooth sailing, it helps having so much stuff going on that you dont have time for for all the media stuff. It also has been interesting the religious debates and discussions I have gotten into when I bring up i'm on a media fast, it defiantly is a fuel for conversation. Anyway, keep on praying for me and the rest of the fast-i-ans, we still dont know what God has in store for us

The difference a day can make

What a difference a week can make. Actually, what a difference an hour can make. After my last Sound of Music pit orchestra performance on Saturday I finally felt like I could breathe again. And then the time change. "Spring forward," they said, "it'll be fun!" They were wrong. Nevertheless, me feeling a little groggy didn't stop the Lord from working in me and through me. I noticed some very tiny,  delicate flowers on my walk home from school a couple days ago that I hadn't noticed before. The sun has been beautifully and brilliantly shining this week, and my friend group got to eat lunch outside two days in a row. How wonderful is that?
     I have loved noticing God's creation more and more as the month progresses, especially in the approaching spring spirit. I have felt His presence more and more, and though there are many ways to experience God, I think one of the most amazing ways is through His creation. Being able to watch sunsets and sunrises, hearing the birds sing in the morning and in the evenings, smell the sweetness of the morning air or the refreshing scent of fresh cut grass, taste homemade birch syrup on fluffy pancakes, and talk with the people that God has placed in my life.
     I'm continually learning from God, and I hope to keep learning and growing. We're halfway done!
Madeleine Jones

Sweet Tunes, Man

The media fast is an interesting time of year. This is only my second year doing it but both times around, it has been a period of growth and revelation. I have found that as much as I enjoy social media and tv throughout the year I have very little trouble staying off of it for the fast.

I definitely think staying away from my music has been the hardest thing. In an effort to replace my usual secular playlists, I have not only been listening to my favorite worship songs, but have also found a lot of new ones. About a week ago I played a random Christian spotify playlist while doing classwork in my last class of the day and I genuinely left school that day feeling calmer than I had in a while. I listen to a lot of music throughout the year and I have realized I don't listen to Christian music enough. There is something so powerful in listening and relating to someone else's music even when it's secular and when you bring that into christian music, when we make that connection in our faith it only makes the effect stronger. There is a reassurance that comes with listening to worship music throughout our daily lives. So much goes on in our lives it can be hard to stay focused on God or keep him in mind throughout our daily routine. At least for me the music serves as a reminder of who God is and that he's always with me even as I struggle or stress.

I hope everyone is enjoying their media fast experience. Keep up the great work! God Bless!

Half done but not half done

The media fast has gone by extremely quick...I mean it's already half done and I feel like it just started a couple of days ago. Thus far, it has been a very good couple of weeks and I haven't missed wasting away my time scrolling through my phone. Sometimes I will pause to watch television on my way back to my room but I usually remind myself to stop watching right away. Goodluck to everyone with the rest of March and hopefully past that!

37.02%

We are currently 37.02% of the way through of the media fast, (Yes, I added it up all the minutes). And it has been up and down, I have caught myself just mindlessly starting to watch TV so I have to keep reminding  myself that I am not doing that right now... but on the flipped side, I have not had the urges to watch TV, Music, it has just been when I am not thinking about it. I have been looking around a lot more at nature and stuff on the way home from school, walking, etc, and I am realy wondering how the evolution people can even believe the crap they call their beliefs. It boggles my mind. Like, everything in creation, points to a creator, but they keep on going with there evolution "stuff", it is annoying. OK, my rant is done. Thanks for your support this month and keep on praying for me,  every word of it helps.
Erik W.

[insert meaningful title here]

     Hey! Just an update on how the first, (and second) week of the media fast went for me!  I definitely have been pretty extreme in what I've considered secular media, and I also have realized how I still don't really have time for media in general, I'm so busy.  I have work, and practicing, and church, and school, and yet, before the media fast, I still had time to fit in my addictive media.  Well even though it's gone, (some of it for a much longer time than just march) I realize not only does it take up a lot of my time, I seem to get bored in the spare time I have.  Weird.  When I had spare time I would most likely listen to music and or read a book.  Well now I have my christian or instrumental music to listen to, but still, I feel like taking up all the time secular media's absence brought, and replacing it with christian media, sometimes can defeat the purpose.  I'm not saying that christian media is at all the same as secular media, but it can get in the way of things that are better.  Christian movies, christian music, and christian books are all good, but what is the point if it just becomes another distraction.  I have been reading Psalms lately, and in it are many different praises, (and a lot of complaining as well), which reveal God's beauty and wonder.  What is any of the christian media of today compared to the word of God itself, or the nature and life he created?  What I'm basically saying is we need more than just replacement.  We need to relate the movies we see to our life, and what God has planned.  We need to listen to the christian music and worship along with it, we need to read the books and still read his word.  This is something I need to work on.  A lot.  The last two weeks went very well, but this is a challenge that I am integrating into the fast, to kind of boost it's effect on me.  Good luck and good job to everybody who's made it this far!  Love in Christ.

"The Cost of Dicipleship"

This is my first year doing the media fast and I admit that it is not all that easy.  It had helped that I decided to delete some of my media before and never return to it, but I still struggle to keep myself completely away from non-christian music.  From the dentist, to the store, to just hearing familiar songs from other cars on the highway, all of which remind me of what I am committing myself to. I usually carry my earphones everywhere around, using music as my escape, but alas, they broke just a week and a half before March 1st. These little complications got me thinking, must I give up everything?? Must I really avoid every little thing, no matter how small?? Do I really have to avoid the 15 second advertisements on YouTube or mute my phone whenever an ad pops up on Pandora? Well, later that night I found my answer in the the book of Luke.  In chapter 14, verses 25-33. Jesus is speaking to a crowd and tells them that he who wants to follow Him, must give up everything he owns.  So those, little ads that come up about a new make-up brand product, or the small trailer clips advertising an upcoming movie, must go too. Despite the fact that they only last about 15 seconds, they get you thinking and wishing the fast is over soon. They get you thinking why you even decided to sign up. So, I guess I can say that I have learned how important it is to follow Jesus completely.

-Lianna R

Realizations

A third of the way through the month, and I have realized two things. One: While my whole world seems to have slowed down due to the fact I have no idea what is happening in the world right now, everyone else's world has stayed the same speed. While avoiding news articles and news media, it has become more clear to me how much we rely on that to know what is going on in the community as well as in other countries. My second epiphany is this: There are tons of Christian movies on Netflix, and yet most all of the ones I have watched have not been good, they have not done any justice to the awesome power that God is. And though my playlist of Christian songs is 71 songs long, I have already gotten tired of those 71 songs. I do feel that it has gotten easier to fill my time with things like homework, studying, and cleaning around the house instead of having the urge to sit down and watch TV. I look forward to the rest of the month to see how I progress in my journey with God.
-Samantha Ross

The calm within the storm

Well, we're over a week into the media fast, and I'd like to say that I've seen God in a bunch of ways and had more time to spend with Him because I've been fasting, but that's not the case. I do think I've been substantially more relaxed without the influence of social media and the not-so-positive-and-encouraging lyrics of secular music. I think I've also been more attentive to the pervasiveness of social media and secular TV, music, and movies in the lives of those around me and how unnecessary a lot of that stuff is to my being "in the know". There are some things that people make references to that I don't know about and therefore make me "out of the know", but I don't really mind that.
     While I very much appreciate these things, I still feel like I haven't doing as much as I could be doing. Like, I've used being swamped with homework and pit orchestra as an excuse to put off a lot of things, including (unfortunately) keeping up with my Bible reading and devotional time. Which is unnerving for me because I feel like I can usually stay on top of things, especially during the Media Fast.
     I think that's the point that God is trying to make to me (I could be totally wrong, and I don't want to misinterpret Him). I may think that I've got it all together, but I really don't. I recently did a mini fast from social media, and after the fast I used it sparingly, so I didn't feel like I was giving a whole lot up in that area, which then may have made me a little cocky when it came time to give up the rest of my media. I thought, "Wow, I'm so cool for already being off social media. I've got it all together. This Fast is gonna be a breeze!" News flash: I don't have it all together, and God has been gently reminding me of that, but He has also been reminding me that He's with me all the way.
     So, I approach the next week of the Fast with my eyes fixed upon heaven and my hopes and fears and shortcomings and successes placed on Jesus' name. Happy fasting! God made you special, and He loves you very much!
Madeleine Jones

Week 1 Done

    The first week of the social media fast has gone by very smoothly and quickly. I am surprised but pleased with how little I have missed using my phone, watching Netflix, etc. This weekend was more difficult than the week had been because I have so much free time on my hands without school and golf taking up most of my day. But, I was able to read through some of Psalms, hangout with friends, see family, and watch a couple movies with all the time on my hands. I also got to go on a walk one day and admire Gods Creation around me which was very peaceful and enjoyable!
    I struggled mostly with not watching T.V. because it is always on whether at my house or a friends, but I was able to plug in my headphones and either listen to music or different passages from the Bible, so it wasn't too bad. Overall, the first week went very well and I'm looking forward to what the next couple of weeks have in store for me.