I gave up social media for Lent and...
Three Christians share what happened when they gave up Facebook, Twitter and other social media for forty days in the run up to Easter

Dave Winter @WinterDave2
Once the habitual routine of reaching for my phone every 10 minutes had been broken (took about three days I reckon) I found the whole experience a very positive one. Not only did I have more time for conversation with people, including my wife, it also was noticed by my children, notably Harrison (5) who told me that I was âlistening more with my eyes nowâ.
I also had to explain to my new workplace, which I joined in the new year, that I was unable to post work updates and adverts. It allowed the door to be opened to explain Lent, the importance of my faith and even say the âJâ word. Something they were happy to support me in.
40 days later, I have found myself back in the cyber world. But itâs definitely at a reduced capacity and I am more mindful of the time I spend on there.
Thinking of giving social media up next Lent? Iâd recommend it to all of you. Sometimes youâve got to move your eyes up from your phone screen to the horizon, as much as we look towards the skies, in order to experience the Lords presence in your life.Â
Steph Corris @Corris1991
Social media was good to me but not FOR me, I wanted to focus on my main man, Jesus. It was really difficult; I struggled, I resorted to a lot of Pinterest which I hadn't banned myself from, and although I had good intentions, those little pockets of time were not used for prayer or growing my relationship with God.
I did learn that I can live without social media and I don't have to post three times a day. I don't have to scroll for the sake of scrolling and I don't have to compare myself to those lives I see on social media daily. I am happy to be back on social media, but I know that I need to make sure it is not controlling me.
It didn't go exactly to plan but I learnt a lot and I became better at directly messaging individuals to find out what's going on in their lives, finding out both the good and the bad and being able to pray and encourage more specifically, in contrast to only seeing the 'highlights reel' that social media tends to show.
Victoria Tatton @Tatts2007
 It turns out that, for me, it gave very little and took away far too much. I lost one of lifeâs most precious commodities to Facebook â time. Whilst always saying I didnât have enough, I could always squeeze in an extra 20 minutes for Facebook to see what someone (who I hadnât spoken to for months) had for lunch.
God showed me that I needed to prioritise and give my time to real, meaningful and encouraging conversation with the people actually present in my life. To look up from a screen and see what was happening around me. So Victoria and Facebook are no longer friends and there is a real sense of liberation about that.
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