Can you imagine being locked in a cold little cubicle all summer, while seeing the sun through the window? I can, because that’s how I spent many of my college summers working at odd office jobs. I’d sit at the front desk until 5 p.m. each day, as the air condition blasted, and longed to go out in the warm sunshine, smelling the fragrant breeze of summer.
(Listen to me read this post instead! Just go here for the 11 minute podcast version.:) Or, listen right here –>
I remember my boss’s wife stopped in one day, and she smelled like sunscreen and summer. And I wished so badly I could go wherever she just came from. Maybe a pool, or a park with her kids.
But alas, I stayed at my stone-cold desk, wishing to escape the snowglobe office world.
When 5 p.m. came and I could finally go outside, my legs thawed like frozen chicken. I’d soak in the golden warmth. And I’d drive home with the windows open, letting the wind blow through my long hair, not caring how tangled it became. The summer breeze was reviving–and somehow awakened me and brought me back to life.
I’m not trying to get anyone to quit their day job–especially if you need to pay the bills. But I do want you to consider quitting something. At least for a time.
And that’s… Facebook.
Doesn’t it just sometimes drain you? The noise, the chaos, the opinions, the grumbling, the fighting, the despair, the overload of information?
Meanwhile, outside, the leaves are lush and green, birds are singing, and June’s warm earth is calling out, beginning to open with life, and bloom.
Summer is like a wedding. Pedals float through the air. Birds sing. The sticky aroma of peony’s and primroses blooming, giving off their beautiful fragrance. I feel like God is alluring me–to Himself as I walk through my neighborhood and watch the petals dance in the breeze. It’s as if He’s calling out, “Come to Me, Come to Me, Come to Me.”
My soul tends to mimic the seasons. And I’m learning to embrace it. I wrote in my journal yesterday, “Summer and the Romance of God.” It’s a time to escape with the Lord. It’s a time to draw near to Him. To grow with Him.
This spring, I also declared this to be the, “Summer of creativity!” My husband just shrugged when I told him that. (Probably, because it sounded to him like I am declaring it “the summer I don’t do any house work!” LOL.) Which..maybe..subtly…I am saying that. But I’m still going with it.
Who’s with me?!
What if the Spirit of God does want to touch my heart in a new way, what if He is inviting me on an adventure with Him? Am I anticipating that? Am I preparing for it?
And am I willing to go where He leads me?
Wherever He leads me?
For too long, I’ve been allowing voices other than God come in and rob my soul, and steal my attention. Our time here is short. Shorter probably than we know.
Psalm 90:2 says, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
If my time is short, (and it is), then I want to spend it doing what I was created to do. I want to glorify the Lord with the life He has given me, the gifts He has given me, the people He has given me, in the time He has given me–rather than chasing after worthless pursuits, distractions for that purpose, (or internet rabbit trails…)
I promise not to abandon *all* housework this summer. BUT, do you know what I am abandoning? Facebook. I fasted from Facebook for two weeks in the Spring–and in its place, I decided to spend time in my actual Bible, reading real books, going outside, and embracing the people right in front of me. And something happened. I felt less foggy. I felt less depressed and anxious. I felt more joyful. I sang more. I felt energy return. I felt the creative juices return–I actually had things burning in my heart again to write!
But what’s weird is this…before my “Facebook Fast,” I didn’t spend GOBS of time pouring over Facebook.
Do you know what it was?
It was the cracks.
A minute here. A few minutes there. Checking notifications here. Scrolling a little here.
It wasn’t *that* much.
But it was enough.
Like a leaky pipe.
Or a boat, with just a tiny hole in it. (A tiny hole will still sink a boat. And that boat won’t get to where it was supposed to go. And neither will the people. Instead they will be wildly flailing in the water, trying to hold onto pieces of the boat, as not to drown.)
The point is: the cracks matter.
My sisters (and brothers), the cracks matter. They matter more than we think.
And I don’t want your boat to sink. I want it to sail. I want you to have an adventure with God. The only real adventure there is.
I don’t want you to spend the summer locked in a cold cubicle. I want you to go outside. I want you to enter the golden warmth. I want the warm breeze to blow through your hair. I want you to inhale the fragrant love-sick aroma of summer. And most of all I want you to enjoy summer, the romance of God.
I want you to “Come away,” with Him. I want you to go where He leads you, whether it’s through smooth sandy beaches, or high into the clefts of the rock. There is an adventure for you–in Him.
That’s why…I’m inviting you to join me in quitting Facebook for the rest of this month. And rather, spend time outside, having adventure, reading your bible, reading real paper books, painting something, writing something, or creating something with God.
Think about it.
If you *can’t* quit Facebook for work, or a commitment, then commit to only that aspect of Facebook. For me, I am in charge of the Barren to Beautiful Community Group, and also my Barren to Beautiful Facebook page.
I am going to remain active there, and hopefully more intentionally so. But all other avenues of Facebook, I am fasting from. (Did you know Facebook designs it so you get hooked, and stay longer than you meant to? It’s not easy, but you can still resist it!) If absolutely don’t need to be on Facebook for work, I recommend DELETING the app. It’s much more effective, and will bring a lightness to your spirit. (If you delete the app you will soon be able to tell how many times you try to check it, and suddenly it’s not there!)
So, do you want to join me in declaring this summer, “The summer of creativity”?
Or, “Summer, and the Romance of God”?
You don’t need my permission to leave the cold cubicle (Facebook!)
I am just reminding you of the permission, of the FREEDOM you have to set down your phone and go enjoy the Lord in this season. I am confident, a summer spent with Him, adventuring with Him, listening to Him, creating with Him–is a summer you won’t regret.
I love you deeply. I am praying for you. That He continues to take you from “barren to beautiful.”
I know He will.
Love,
Rebekah
P.S. Are you in? Leave me a comment, or email me at [email protected] to let me know, and I will begin praying for you by name!
Yes, so beautifully written! I’m in!