You Need a Media Detox
- Sheryl Landry
- Sep 11, 2016
- 6 min read
Finally, believers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable and worthy of respect, whatever is right and confirmed by God’s word, whatever is pure and wholesome, whatever is lovely and brings peace, whatever is admirable and of good repute; if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think continually on these things [center your mind on them, and implant them in your heart]. (Philippians 4:8 AMP)
I have never been silent about the idea that I am probably the only person left on Earth who misses the days when we didn’t have cell phones; and I’ll boldly confess that I miss the days when the television went off.
(Don’t look at me like that—I really mean it!)
What would we do if television reverted to the way it was back in the day? At 11:59 p.m. the American flag broadcasts on every channel, with the national anthem as its soundtrack; and at midnight…nothing. The TV broadcasts go off and stay off until morning!
What would we do if the only information that could be accessed about celebrities—those we like and dislike—was factual, unbiased, available in a book and not Googleable (yes, that’s a word…), not showcased on a reality show or made available on social media by a blogger who overheard a conversation from someone who knows someone that saw that celebrity in an unfavorable situation?!
Who Have We Become?
I really believe we were just different before we had such unlimited access to media and information about other people’s lives. (When did we get so nosy?) Or perhaps we weren’t different; perhaps this unlimited access just revealed what was already in us. We’re inundated with information that somehow fuels our desire to dig, to pry, to comment, to retweet, to repost, to share, to create a meme, to tag our friends and make sure they know what’s going on.
We love it! We live for it!
Who have we become that we’re entertained by finding out that someone’s going to jail for beating his girlfriend again or discovering that someone’s wife is cheating with her husband’s business partner or learning that so-and-so had a major fight with what’s-her-face?
When did putting people on pedestals and then violently dragging them down with our words become a business?
Why are we addicted to sharing our opinions about other people’s lives?
It’s a Habit
I’ve always taught media literacy to the young ladies that I work with through The Culture and one of the main things that I stress to them is that media is not inherently bad, but, that we have to be able to filter the messages that we receive from the media that we access. I don’t care how many people you follow, how many friends you have or how many blogs you subscribe to, here’s a revelation: you don’t have to read or share everything that you come across. You really don’t! (See, don’t you feel free now? Like a weight off of your shoulders…) And it’s particularly important for us as believers, to evaluate what motivates our online media habits.
Are we checking our social media first thing in the morning? (Come on, you know what I mean by “first thing in the morning”: before you pray or spend time with God, before you say “good morning” to your family, before you wash your face…)
Are we subscribed to gossip blogs? Or following so many unbelievers that their content dominates our social media feeds?
What motivates us to share or promote ungodly content? (And please know that not everything that is “motivational” or “inspirational” is OK to be shared by believers. Gimme one second, I’ll prove it to you.)
Are we checking our mobile devices every two seconds after we post something to see whether or not someone liked it or shared it?
Are we sharing negative content because we know that doing so will create a stir among our followers and get attention?
Are we making it our business to make comments about other people’s personal lives? Especially sharing opinions that add no value and don’t reflect our belief in God?
Are we spending more time on social media than we do in studying God’s Word or in prayer?
Now, I’m going to stop asking questions because I can tell you’re getting upset that I’m in your business! But, I want you to remember the sentiment from my recent post on places, postures and positions: that we should not be taking our cues from the world. As believers our hearts, behaviors, minds, wills and emotions should line up with God’s word and His character.
Philippians 4:8 gives us a perfect template for the types of media we should be looking for and promoting through our social networks: whatever is true, honorable, worthy of respect, right AND confirmed by God’s word, pure and wholesome, lovely and brings peace, admirable and of good repute.
Now, I know that this scripture talks about the things we should think on, but, let's face it: what we share, like, post or subscribe to online is a reflection of how we think. So, let’s find out how we can change some of our online media habits and work toward lining them up with God’s word.
Put God First
For real, give God your mornings and replace the time that you take scrolling through your email, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter first thing in the morning with prayer, meditation on His word and worship.
Resist the Retweet (The Share + The Repost)
No more sharing of content because we like the graphics or the typography or because somebody famous shared it. Evaluate the content first. Is what you’re getting ready to share going to be the best representation of who and what you are? Does it meet the terms of the template in Philippians 4:8?
Think about it: You’re a female entrepreneur, living out your designed life and fulfilling God’s purpose for your life with creativity and grace. A daughter of the Most High God--that’s who you are! Now, do you think that reposting that “Boss B____” graphic to your Instagram feed is going to represent what you want people to see, know and understand about you? Especially since it’s going to be right next to and above your previous “Repent and be saved…” and “God has great plans for you!” posts.
I don’t care if it has glitter and your favorite colors. I don’t care if it’s become a popular saying or that it is a trending hashtag. Let’s try trending #YouDontHaveToRepostEverythingYouSee! Let’s try that…
Not all motivational content is created equal…evaluate the content. Don’t just consider the things you post/share/retweet/repost within the context of what you believe about yourself or how it represents you, consider it within the context of how it represents your God and what He has said about you!
Delete, Unsubscribe, Unfollow + Turn Off
By definition, a detox not only involves the abstinence from taking in certain things, it also involves the purging of certain things from the body.
Bearing that in mind, now may be a good time to go back and delete some of the things that you posted in your recent history. Some of us may need to go back and delete our entire account and start from scratch, and a fresh start is a wonderful thing! (Particularly if you recently got saved—why not start over in your social media in the same way that you’re starting on your journey serving Christ? It’s a great way to share your faith and connecting with other believers on social media can be an excellent motivation for you.)
Unsubscribe from, unfollow, block or mute the people, online magazines or blogs that are not curating and distributing content that is in line with our new template.
Also, where it’s not absolutely necessary, turn off the notifications on your mobile devices.
Find + Follow
What you take in after a physical detox is important. What’s the point of going through a detox only to fill up on fried chicken and cheeseburgers again, right?
The same holds true here. So, the last step to our media detox is taking in healthy content by finding and following content creators and social media accounts that have the features of the mindset outlined in Philippians 4:8.
Share content from accounts that line up with your Godly ideals, your perspectives on parenting, your business values or your desire and ability to motivate and encourage others.
Practice It
I’ll leave you with what Paul said in Philippians 4:9: “The things which you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, PRACTICE THESE THINGS [in daily life], and the God [who is the source] of peace and well-being will be with you.”
I encourage you to take this challenge and please do connect and let me know how it's going using #TheDesignedDetox on Instagram or Twitter!
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