Inside: I recently did a "distraction fast"- and it wasn't easy. In Part 1 I talked about what I learned. Today I'll tell you about the process that led me to those lessons,  and what you can expect if you choose to do your own distraction fast. 

“Let’s do the Whole30!” I enthusiastically suggested to my husband. 

“Ok” he said, with much less vigor. 

If you’ve ever done the Whole30, you’ve probably seen the popular Whole30 calendar that details the stages and emotions you might experience throughout the 30 days.

And what an emotional ride it was! Can I tell you there were days I wanted to cry and just freaking get some bread and cheese for a Saturday night?!

On day 5, after a hike, sitting in the car in front of the grocery store I tried to convince Lance to grab some brats and buns. DAY 5! 

Of course he was the one holding strong…

Disclaimer: We definitely caved on day 27. It was April 2020, the world had just shut down, as a result our business was now making zero income, and we just needed a pizza!!!

But for all buzz around the Whole30, I found this distraction fast so much more life-giving. 

Like with the Whole30 program, it wasn’t easy at first. It was a process. A process worth experiencing, and journey definitely worth taking.

Today I want to share a little bit of that process with you. Because if you’re planning on doing your own "distraction fast", I want you to be prepared!

Keep in mind: this is my experience. Your journey might, and probably will, look very different from mine. But the point is, whatever the process, it is one! You won’t feel magical on day one. 

So with that in mind, here are the 5 stages I went through during this “distraction fast”:

1. “This is going to be fun!”

When my friend suggested we do this fast together I was pumped! I kinda felt like my kids had a week before when I added something new to our morning routine: The Morning Chart. 

On this chart I put eight tasks they needed to complete first thing in the morning - brushing teeth, reading the Bible, eating breakfast, getting dressed, etc.

And for the first week they couldn’t wait to wake up and get to it. It was like I was tossing free M&Ms in the air for everyones pleasure. They were ecstatic to complete their Morning Chart. 

Doing something new is always fun, right? The idea of growing + learning + becoming more of the person we wish we were is always an exciting prospect. 

But then reality sets in.

2. “This is going to be hard”

The second Monday of the Morning Chart my oldest son looked up at me and said “do we have to do the morning chart? It’s sooooo boring.”

What happened to all the glitz and glam???

But the truth is - I can totally relate.

Because it took me far less then a week (one day, maybe??) to feel uninspired with this idea of a noise fast. 

My habits and tendencies were stronger than I’d realized. I wasn’t used to not having somewhere simple and quick to go to when I needed to “get away” for a minute. And I wasn’t sure what I was going to do without that easy distraction of a podcast or YouTube video (social media has been off my radar for awhile now, but that used to be a go-to as well).

This was going to be harder than I thought.

3. “This isn’t cheating, is it?”

I did what so many if us to when things get tough - I looked for a way out.

To be fair, I didn’t realize I was doing it at first. It just snuck up on me.

Now, in my normal life, I’m not someone who watches the news or even reads it. But for the first few days of this distraction I found myself scrolling endlessly through the news on my phone.

“What am I doing? I thought to myself. 

Then it hit me - I had just replaced my old method of being distracted with a new one.

I deleted the news widget on my phone. 

4. “This is just going to take plan ‘ole discipline isn’t it?”

I didn’t really like all quiet. My body would silently lunge to my phone when I was by myself folding clothes or when I was about to get into the shower. 

Sheer will was keeping me from pressing play. I had trained myself to go to the phone - trained myself to go to noise when there was silence. And even had convinced myself that filling the space with noise was a good use of time! I was learning and growing with all the information right? 

While the more intense “this is hard!” went away, there was still this sense of “how bad is it really to just push play?”.

It came down to making a choice. Old fashioned sticking to what I had promised myself. So that’s what I did. 

And with that choice to not hit play, came the choice to do something else with that space - and in my case it was prayer. 

And at the beginning it wasn't some emotional “I really want to pray more!” kind of thing. It didn’t look or feel beautiful - at first. 

It was just... a choice. 

5. “I don't want it to end”

Finally, towards the end, I felt more full and alive with this new routine of less noise. I felt more present with the kids and more clear-minded. When I started to feel the intense urge to distract myself from the present, I would more easily turn to prayer or just sit and enjoy the quiet. 

Isn't that how it is with so many hard things in life? They are hard. They are painful. They feel unnatural. But when we persist, endure, and are faithful, we eventually see the joy.

In fact, I realized I enjoyed it so much that I haven’t gone back to my old podcast listening habits (though literally just last night I deleted YouTube from my phone because I found it was too easy to drift off to). 

A note on joy vs. happiness

Let me go on a quick rabbit trail: I want to be clear that not everything we do that is good will bring happiness. In fact, if you are a believer and follow of Jesus there may be many things that you are asked to do that don’t bring happiness (at least not happiness here in this world). 

But there will always be joy.

And joy trumps happiness every time.

What Van Gogh and motherhood have in common...

Can I go on another little tangent for a minute? Because this just came to me as I was writing. 

Maybe the things you are being asked to do, or that you feel God is pushing you towards, won’t bring you direct happiness (though the joy will still be there), but that doesn't mean it’s not worth it.

Here's an illustration: Van Gogh is a crazy famous artist, right? I can remember learning about him in elementary school and trying to copy a painting he did of a vase full of sunflowers. 

But that was not always the case - in fact, while he was alive he only sold one painting. ONE. 

But years later the world is enjoying and reaping the fruit of his labor. 

Motherhood can be like that sometimes, I think. 

Maybe you are being asked to give up your phone, or podcasts, or a certain genre of book or that T.V. show you’ve been binging. 

And maybe doing that won't necessarily bring you more happiness - in fact you might terribly miss that thing. 

But maybe the fruit of that obedience will be enjoyed by your children. And then maybe their children…

So while there are some things that are hard, that doesn't mean they aren’t good. And while they are good, that doesn’t mean they will bring happiness. Maybe doing that thing isn’y actually for you at all - maybe it’s for someone else. Or maybe it’s just for God.

That was quite a long tangent, but I hope you get the point. If God is asking you to give something up, either for a short time, or for an extended period of time, obey Him.

Rooting for you,