For the past decade or so, I took a sabbatical each January from using Facebook. It served as a  reset of sorts. A break to get out of the poor habits of use that accumulated over a year. The time away enabled me to focus on other pastimes as well as give myself to working on other areas of life that needed attention. Each year, I returned to the platform in a better place, ready to re-engage.

However, I noticed this year that the sabbatical didn’t “work”. There was no reset and I found it difficult to break away from use. And when I returned in February, I sensed that more was needed than a one-month break. So, I have decided to make a permanent end to my use of Facebook. 

Now, I tell you this not to put myself forth as some great spiritual exemplar. In fact, it is actually a sign of my weakness and my need for the continued work of the Holy Spirit. Nor would I want anyone to hear this as “Facebook bad!” and that no follower of Jesus should use it. Many are finding ways to use the platform for kingdom ministry and I am thankful for that. However, I do think all of us should be thoughtful in our use of any social media and regularly evaluate that use. 

There were three main questions I wrestled with throughout this decision-making process. I share them as food for thought. If you find them useful, good. If not, then discard.
 

1.  Is my use making me more apathetic? I, like many, started using Facebook for the purpose of keeping us with distant family and friends. When I logged in, it was with intentionality. I had a family milestone to commemorate, a prayer request to share, or a quote that I hoped might provoke good reflection and discussion. Lately, however, I found myself simply getting on for no other reason than simply to scroll.  
2. Is my use playing to my desires as a consumer? When I was creating content or responding to content, I found this to be helpful. I could put an idea forth on a forum and get feedback. If I needed recommendations for commentaries for a new sermon series, I received numerous helpful suggestions. Now, I rarely create my own content nor do I see any original content from others. Instead, it is ads upon ads upon ads upon ads. It plays to my covetousness, to my desire for the newest gadget, and to my comparison game with others. It incites my greed and not my gratitude.
3. Is my use becoming a means of escape from my real life relationships and responsibilities? This was probably the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. Because I was not logging in with a purpose in mind, I found myself scrolling for hours. And that temptation was increased if there was a hard task to accomplish or any type of stressful situation to address. It kept me from better pursuits including good spiritual habits. I was certainly not “redeeming the time”. And the mindless scrolling was not helping my heart, mind, and soul to focus on those things set forth in Philippians 4:8.

My answers to those questions made it clear that a change was necessary and, thus, my decision. Again, my point in sharing this is not (I hope) to puff up myself nor to make a blanket statement about everyone’s use of Facebook. Instead, it is my encouragement to all of us that we, by the grace of God and the power of the indwelling Spirit, take stock of lives and see if there is anything that is a hindrance or obstacle to our wholehearted devotion to Christ. If so, may He give us the grace and strength to cast them off or aside. And in doing so, may we be more and more conformed into the image of our Savior and Lord (Romans 8:29)