Let me explain myself. If you know me at all, you know I actually love social media and constantly post pictures and statuses. You also know that I give up social media every year for Lent. The truth is I have a love/hate relationship with it. I could live without it, but I can’t delete it from my life. Let me start by saying I used to be highly active on social media to the point that everybody knew what was going on in my life. They could come up to me and immediately start a conversation about my academics or weekend plans.

Before I continue, I would like to make a disclaimer. I think social media is amazing! I keep up with many family members and since transferring, many friends from my previous school. I also love it because I am able to contribute positivity or laughter to the world for the day. I have been told before that people enjoy the stuff I post, which makes me feel less self-conscious about throwing up my life onto social media. The outreach you can have, such as this article right now, is amazing.

On the other hand, when I really stop and think about social media, it drives me insane. I used to allow social media to rule me. When people didn’t like my profile photo or status, I would get discouraged. It led to feelings of jealousy, anger, and frustration. I found my worth in getting likes and comments. Now let me make it clear that I never posted anything that wasn’t true to me. That is not how I have ever been, but I found a lot of worth in these things. Many people find themselves wishing they had what others did while they have many blessings for which to be grateful. Social media can have a negative impact on emotion and mood. I know I have taken people off my timeline because what they post gets to me on deeper levels. I find my favorite days are the ones where I don’t spend countless hours scrolling through social media. I recommend fasting from social media just for a week and see the impact it has on your life. I can guarantee you will find God’s beauty in creation. You will find there is so much more to life.

As I grow older and truly use social media as a keep-up platform, I realize my worth isn’t in social media. People can like what I post or not. I just want to post what is important to me and important for people to hear. A like or a comment is nothing but that. It doesn’t mean someone likes or hates me. It doesn’t mean people don’t want to be friends with me. Let’s face it, liking or commenting is not “keeping up” with people because you aren’t actively engaged in the process.

I have a challenge for you. Let’s find each other again. Let’s actually talk to each other. Let’s find the beauty in creation and not a screen. Spend quality time with people and find that life is not just contained on a tiny screen.