I Prayed for You, Momma

I say prayers with my kids before bed. Sometimes they are the sweetest prayers ever (especially from my 4 year old) and sometimes they are the funniest prayers ever (again, especially from my 4 year old). I encourage my kids to pray on their own.

A few weeks ago, my oldest son said he wanted to pray silently before we prayed.

That seemed fantastic to me. I prayed while he prayed, smiling and thanking God for his heart. When he was finished, I commended him for praying.

He said, "I prayed for you, Momma."

Stunned, I am sure I said something like, "Oh, you did?"

Then he explained that he prayed I wouldn't spend so much time on Facebook.

Ouch.

I am not a big Facebooker. I am not.

REALLY, I am not.

(Ok, just a bit of denial there for your reading pleasure.)

The truth is, my kids see me on the computer and they assume I am on Facebook. The reason: Facebook is perfect for escaping.

'Ugh, life is stressful. The kids are fighting. Maybe one quick game of Farkle will make me smile.'

'Oh my gosh, my house is a wreck. Maybe seeing pictures of my friends will comfort me... or maybe just one more game of Farkle.'

I never spend hours on Facebook. I just jump on and off it all day long.
My kids see that.

Sometimes, I talk to my kids while I am on Facebook. Yes, I am guilty. That's zero of the eye-to-eye contact that I am struggling to teach my kids.

My son's prayer hit me like a rock in the middle of my forehead.

One of the reasons I tend to avoid watching TV is that I have seen it take precedence over real relationships. My mom (I love my mom, dearly. I must say that.) would often struggle with finding balance with TV viewing. I vividly remember her shushing me or only talking to me during commercials. That frustrated me. I never doubted her love. But, it frustrated me.

My love of all things internet is often that kind of distractor from my relationships with my kids, my spouse, and my relationship with God. It's humbling to admit that. I don't want to be that person.

I am taking a Facebook hiatus. It's for Lent. I am going to use that time to reconnect in new ways to God and my family.
I am disconnected from Facebook. I deactivated my account. That was the only way I could keep myself from checking status updates on my phone (can we say, addiction?).

If you are my Facebook friend- no worries, I will be back after Easter in some form or another. Facebook claims all of my facebook friendships will still be intact (unless someone takes this opportunity to de-friend me).

I am excited about the Lenten season. This Facebook sacrifice is going to be refreshing. I am certain of it.