Media addicted and spiritually desensitized?

Today while driving I happened upon a sermon being given about Media addiction and becoming spiritually desensitized. He challenged everyone to do a media fast and find out how addicted to media you are, or how spiritually desensitized you have become.
While this may sound easy, it may well be the hardest thing you do.


1. Take upon yourself to have a media fast for 1-10 days
This means totally unplugged from the media.  Turn off that phone, turn off the television, the radio in the car etc. It all has to go.  

Do this for at least one day, but up to ten if you can handle it.
Some will start to get jittery after an hour, going to check the phone. You may begin itching for that feeling of connection, stirring to hear the background sounds of all the media noise that is always around. If it is hard to go even an hour, you know that you are addicted.

2. After a period of media fasting turn on prime-time television and watch for an hour.

You may be shocked at what you find.

I have taken time to fast from the media several times over the last few years. I even wrote about it nearly 3 years ago on my other blog encouraging people to take time out to unplug.  It is nice to get away from the media for a bit. It is nice to take a breather, but I did not go on to step 2. I did not stop to look at these questions: How does all the media affect us? Do we really get desensitized by it?
  
 Recently I had an experience that put it all into perspective. I was watching the television and I started noticing that on this particular show people were being brutalized and shot right in front of my face and I was watching realized that I was not having much of a reaction to it. It was just "normal" All of a sudden a passage of scripture from the Book of Mormon ran through my mind from Mormon 2:18......  "a continual scene of  wickedness and abominations has been before my eyes" It awoke me to the state that I was in. 

I also at this time had an experience where I had picked a TV series for my husband and I to watch. We began the series and after a few episodes I noticed that there were things happening in the show that I knew were not good, yet I watched on because I was addicted to the series. A few more episodes and I found myself watching the women on this show-- women who were living a life far different from my own and found myself thinking "Is that what men want a woman to be like? Maybe I should...."  All of a sudden; I awoke to my thoughts and said "Whoa! hold on a minute, Did I really just think that?"  I was shocked and in disbelief that I had those thoughts. I told my husband that we could not watch that show anymore because it was affecting my thoughts and the way I related to the world.  He agreed, yet he was like me--addicted!  

A few more episodes and we finally decided to put the series away for good. It was poisoning us.  I began to be more aware of what the family was being exposed to. I was finding it hard to be a good Christian/Proverbs 31 woman when other ideas and ways to behave were being presented before me. It was all becoming too appealing. I was starting to want to please the world as opposed to God. It was a startling realization for me to realize that I had convinced myself that "it isn't all that bad, there are worse things that we could be watching" but drop by drop it was adding up, the attitudes of what we were exposing ourselves to was creeping in my attitude and thoughts were changing. I was accepting things that 5 years ago I would have never even have imagined.  It was time for a real change. 

Now, We unplug a whole lot more. We are finding more time dedicated to learning the ways of the Lord and reading the scriptures. We are finding ourselves telling  and retelling the stories of courage and hope from them. We are very aware of the media and are limiting its influence. We still watch more TV than needed, but I am putting a plan in place to limit the amount of media this summer while the children are out of school.  It is a battle worth fighting.  Being aware is the first step to lasting change. I am glad I became aware and have been able to begin a new chapter in our lives.  Now it is your turn. Try the challenge, see what happens in your life.

Blessings to you,

Happy Momma 



  

putting things in the right order (let God be first in your life)

"The average woman today, I believe, would do well to appraise her interests, evaluate the activities in which she is engaged, and then take steps to simplify her life, putting things of first importance first, placing emphasis where the rewards will be greatest and most enduring, and ridding herself of the less rewarding activities."
Belle S. Spafford, the ninth Relief Society general president.


Right in the front cover of my bible I have a quote from Elder Neil A Maxwell it says....
If you have not chosen the kingdom of God first, it will in the end make no difference what you have chosen instead. It is a strong reminder to me to get things in order. We have been warned often about letting the things of the world get in the way of  us seeking the things of the Lord. It can often be difficult with so many voices and so many things pulling us in so many ways. I know from experience that Satan is very good at distracting us and keeping us from the things of most importance. We get weighed down by so many little things. One of the hardest things for many of us to say is "no". This can be troubling because often what happens is that we end up saying yes to so many good things that we inadvertently find ourselves saying no to things that matter most. We end up overwhelmed and thinking about the worldly things more often than the things of God.

 

Life is busy, there are many things that are to be done. It is easy to become worried, stressed and overwhelmed by the things we are doing. It becomes easy to get caught up and  forget our purpose and our creator.  Sometimes we need to just stop and look at the wonderful things around us and breathe in heaven for a moment, then make more opportunities to breathe life from the heavens.  Here is an excerpt from a book that I am writing that illustrates my point.     


" I remember one Sunday morning when my young daughter who was about four years old came into the bathroom while I was getting ready for church. She told me. "Mom you and I, we look so beautiful in our dresses; let's dance" The old worried, stressed out me would have pushed that aside and say, "Not now, I don't have the time, we are going to be late".  I was learning the power of those little moments. I swept up my daughter and took  ten or fifteen seconds to whisk her about the bathroom in a magical dance. In those few seconds we were swept up into a fantasy land,  a magical moment that could have easily been lost. The dance only lasted a few moments, but the feelings lasted most of the day, and the memory will last a lifetime." 

    
I pray that you will take this to heart and spend a moment to ponder on the things of God today. That you will breathe in life from him. That you will make thoughts of Heaven a regular part of your daily life. 
Blessings
Happy Momma