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The internet and our smart phones can be a great thief of time and attention.  We love this easy way to connect with our loved ones . . . but often we forget to include the source and Love that is our Creator and Eternal Father.  Many good, faithful Christians have recognized this and have created ways to gently remind themselves and others to include prayer in our everyday routines.

The greatest and most innovative creators of this have got to be John Paul and Annie Deddens.  John Paul and Annie are the Founders of PrayMoreNovenas.com

Before I even thought about blogging – and before I entered the world of social media, I somehow came across Pray More Novenas.  I thought it was a great idea for a website to send me a reminder to pray – so I subscribed immediately!  I’m still subscribed today – and now I am a huge fan of Annie’s other ministry, Catholic Wife, Catholic Life!

If you have not already, definitely sign up for PrayMoreNovena’s newsletter.  John Paul and Annie now host online retreats in addition to their novena reminders!  It’s a great resource!

Now, if you are one of the 500 million people who scroll on Instagram daily – I have 3 places you can visit where you can pray with others – and be prayed for by others – right there on the gram!

But first, I am going to suggest you download this FREE lock screen package and put one of the 10 lock screens on your phone immediately if not sooner! It is a smart, holy, virtuous idea to say a prayer before going on social media – whether that be Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook or TWITTER (people are so angry on Twitter why is that?)!  I found that when I used this prayer I limited my time on social media much more than when I don’t say the prayer.  It’s a great reminder of God’s love and will for us!

Now that you are on “the gram”, here are 3 places you can pray with hundreds of others on Instagram!

Pray the Rosary in the Morning

1. ManyHailMarysataTime 

ManyHailMarys was started by Kristin Reilly, founder of OneHailMaryataTime.  Kristin and her sister Jill lead the Rosary every morning on Instagram Live – often with guests (I got to do this once, it was so fun!  It was also the one day Instagram went down this summer lol).  Over 200 women wake up and pray the Rosary on Instagram – it is very moving and remarkable.

I attempt to join in and at least listen, but inevitably that is one time during the day where every child needs me to hug, feed, provide drink and give attention to at a pretty intense level.

Since I found myself often interrupted, I thought of a way people who might be having the same issue could still pray using Instagram, but do so in a shorter time span and at any time during the day.  So that leads us to the next place you can pray on Instagram every day . . .

The Rosary is so powerful!  Read this incredible story here: The Power of ONE Rosary

Pray a Novena or Short Prayer when you get a free moment

2. PrayerWineChocolate

Since I have noticed that my post titled 11 Quick, but Powerful, Prayers (with free printable)* tends to get a lot of traffic – and since I myself get pulled away from the Rosary on Instagram almost daily, I decided to post shorter prayers on my Instagram stories every day. I also am quite aware that I often intend to say a novena, but fail at saying it on consecutive days.  Before I started this short prayer on my Insta-stories idea, I had been attempting to pray the Saint Joseph novena for months.  So, I started this practice to not only help others, but to keep myself accountable.

Right now the plan is to say novena prayers, then take 3 days to pray more traditional prayers addressing God our Father and Jesus and the Holy Spirit.  Then, choose another novena and keep going.  I am, however, open to suggestions!  If you have any, send me an email or direct message me on Instagram!

*Just want the printable?  Click here, subscribe and it will be emailed to you! 11 Quick Powerful Prayers
We just got finished the Novena Rose Prayer!  St. Therese is one of my favorite saints

Pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet

3. dailydivinemercy

The third place you can pray with others is on dailydivinemercy’s profile.  DailyDivineMercy also uses Instagram Live (like manyhailmarys).  Pray with a devout married couple and pray for the souls in your family and those who have passed away.  I often see dailydivinemercy go Live, but at that point of the day, I am so tired.  However, I love that this is an option – and at the end of the day!

Don’t get me wrong, I love to scroll Instagram to connect with others and simply to relax after my children go to bed, but I also want to make sure I stay connected with God.  After all, He loved us before Instagram

Check out these new Prayer Wine Chocolate products!  Each purchase helps support this ministry!

The post Insta-Prayers: 3 Times a Day You Can Pray With Others On Instagram appeared first on Prayer Wine Chocolate.

This post contains affiliate links.  Please see my About Me page for more details.

I just got my very first Iphone – and it was nice enough to inform me how long I spent on social media the first day I used it.

Wow, that was a rude awakening.

Wayyyyyy to many hours.

I have a feeling I am not alone.

If you are like me, you know that we look at our phones more than we should – and although we don’t want to give them up entirely, we want to be present and attentive to the people and gifts that are with us in the real world more than the virtual world.

Although I’m still trying to find and embrace the right balance, I want to share some strategies that have really worked for me when I implement them.

Ways to decrease social media use and be more present

1. Take a moment to pray before you go on any social media platform.

Before getting the new phone, I changed my lock screen from a picture of my husband and son to a new prayer.

This is a prayer that I wrote and Sara, from To Jesus Sincerely, designed for our work over at CatholicsOnline.net.

This lock screen/wallpaper is totally free.  I can honestly say it made a difference on the amount of time I spent online and made me more aware of the time I spent on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.

There were times when I picked up my phone, saw the prayer and thought . . . what am I doing, I need to be doing (fill in the blank) not looking at my phone.  Just the image of the prayer gave a moment to process what I was doing.  It’s crazy, I pick it up subconsciously and this prayer “woke me up” a few times.

Other times I would pray the prayer, go on, and notice I wouldn’t stay on as long as I had in the past.

I need to get it on my new phone ASAP.

I created this because I know there were many times I have been on Facebook and something was posted that changed my emotional state so much it actually impacted my entire day.

That shouldn’t happen.  Saint John of the Cross, Padre Pio and Saint Teresa Avila all have quotes that tell us to not let anything disturb our peace!

We need to remember this.  I need to remember this.  Taking a moment to open our minds and hearts to Our Lord before entering the social media world allows us to be guided by the Holy Spirit while we are there.

2. Use strategies to stay off the gram, Facebook, etc.

I often put my phone upstairs when I am downstairs (or vice versa).  I also use a timer where I tell myself, “you need to do the dishes, clean the kitchen and blah blah blah” for this amount of time WITHOUT looking at your phone.  (Now you know – I’m an addict).

These strategies work for me.  I’ve also talked to others about what they do.  Recently, Chloe Langr interviewed Sara and I on her Letters to Women podcast.

The topic, A Letter to the Woman Navigation Social Media today, allowed me to hear what strategies both Chloe and Sara use.

Sara mentioned some of her strategies include:

• Turning off  notifications on your phone. 
• Setting alarms on your phone for “times to pray”.
• Putting social media apps inside of folders.
• Using an app that limits social media usage*

*If that last one interests you, here is an article I thought looked helpful: 7 Best Apps That Block Social Media On iPhone And Android

This episode is filled with great conversations about social media and our role as Catholics on social media.

Also, this post 3 Ways to Unplug might give you more ideas too.

3. Use social media in a way that promotes the greater good

Social media can be a good thing!  It’s fun, it keeps us connected and there is great potential to love and be a witness to our faith.  But, it’s also still very new.

Take a good look at who you are called to be on social media.

For many of us, our day to day lives for years did not have social media as a part of our daily schedule.

We can’t think back to when our parents gave us the “social media” talk.  Is that even a thing now?  I honestly don’t know.  What I do know is that tweens and teens everywhere are asking for smart phones and social media privileges.

I also know it’s stressing parents out – and rightfully so. A recent news article stated

Statistics show one out of every five teens has been contacted by a child predator online”

( Read the full article here: Dangerous Social Media Apps Kids are Using . . .)

Also check out How to Get Your Tech Loving Teen to Prayer Journal

There are concerns that it causes more anxiety and like video game addiction, it can be problematic.  And on top of all these worldly concerns, there is a matter of faith.  How does social media use effect our souls – or does it at all.
I propose that it very much impacts our souls – and like Chris Pratt once said, “You have a soul, be careful with it.”

It is our responsibility that we do so. Being aware of this led to the creation of the course: How to be a Good Catholic on Social Media

How to be a Good Catholic on Social Media 

Are you living out your Faith online?

This course is a perfect introduction to healthy, holy social media use for teens and young adults, and a much-needed reminder for people of all ages.

Learn the ins-and-outs of virtuous social media use through instructional videos and the accompanying printable workbook. Reflect on the application questions to help you put your Catholic Faith into practice online. Take this course by yourself, with a friend, or as a parent-child team to help your teen get a safe start to social media.

All materials are digital and available immediately upon purchase.

Perhaps this summer we should skip the parish book club and invite a small group to take this course together.

Maybe moms and dads who keep hearing “mom, I want my own phone.  I want snapchat.  I should be allowed on Instagram . . . etc.” could say, “okay, let’s make a deal.  You want to go on social media, you have to take this course first.”

If you want to purchase the course, use the coupon code LaunchSpecial (good until Sunday, June 16th) for 20% off.

I love that this course will most likely spark conversations that families should be having . . . but just don’t realize it.

Although it is brand new, some people were given the chance to preview it.  This is what some of them had to say about “How to be a Good Catholic on Social Media”:

Outstanding course! I feel confident my teenage son has the tools from this course to make proper decisions on social media.Sara is a very good teacher,and makes it easy to understand the lessons! Thank you Sara!

-Laura Hanrahan

What an EXCELLENT course! It really is a perfect outline for healthy, holy social media use. This course was a good refresher for me as an adult. I will definitely be coming back for this course when my children are old enough and going through it with them 

-Katherine Reay

How do you manage social media use?  What are some ways social media helps you to be a better Christian? Tell us in the comments!

And speaking of using social media . . . I would love to connect with you on Facebook (Prayer Wine Chocolate); Pinterest (Prayer Wine Chocolate) and Instagram (Prayer Wine Chocolate)

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The post Social Media and Summer: How to Not Let Your Social Media Habits Steal Your Soul, Joy and Experiences appeared first on Prayer Wine Chocolate.

This post has affiliate links.  Please see my “About” Page for more details.

Catholic Social Media Influencers began as a Facebook group where Catholics who write, create, publish and simply inspire support one another.  You can now follow Catholic Social Media Influencers on Pinterest!  Follow here: Catholic Social Media Influencers

Annie Deddens

I’m a Catholic wife & writer — and I very much identify with being a producer. I used to work in broadcast journalism for years as a reporter & producer, and now I’m using those same skills to find some of the best Catholic reads out there about living an authentic Catholic life as a woman, and sharing those things on my blog. I also run a prayer ministry with my husband, called Pray More Novenas. We’ve been doing that for nearly six years (wow!), we’ve been married for almost five (I can’t believe it!), and it’s still just the two of us (for now), living in Dayton, Ohio, my husband’s hometown.

Where can you be found on social media?

On Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/catholicwifecatholiclife

On Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/catholicwifecatholiclife/

And on Pinterest here: https://www.pinterest.com/catholicwifecl/

What is your favorite prayer and/or quote?

This is constantly changing… Right now, it’s this from St. Francis de Sales:

The same everlasting Father

who cares for you today, will care for you tomorrow

and every day.

Either He will shield you from suffering

or give you unfailing strength to bear it.

Be at peace and then and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginings.”

And my current favorite prayer is the super short & simple, “Jesus, I trust in You.”

What services do you provide?

Through our prayer ministry, my blog and social media, I provide encouragement, particularly for women, to strive to lead a holy life — in our every day lives, doing the small & ordinary things.

I’m available to write for faith-based websites about marriage, our Faith, and the lives of the saints — and what we can learn from them. I’m also available to write sponsored posts. Please contact me for my rates!

Tell us what freelance opportunities you hope to provide:
Sponsored posts and writing faith-based content about marriage and the lives of the saints.

Contact info
E-mail: catholicwifecatholiclife@gmail.com

 Kirby Hoberg

I’m a Texan girl who just transplanted from the SF Bay Area to the Twin Cities. By day I am home with the kids, by night I dance ballet and act in theater productions.
I love coffee, Anthropology, Country music, and British television, plus I have the drinking taste of an old man. I’m a 2nd generation homeschooler, semi-crunchy mom, who can’t seem to run out of depths to delve in Catholicism.

Where can you be found on social media?

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/underthyroof/

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/underthyroof/

What is your favorite prayer and/or quote?

New favorite quote:

“Take care of our body as if you were going to live forever; and take care of your soul as if you were going to die tomorrow.”

– St. Augustine.

The two things I see that moms are tempted to sacrifice are their physical care and prayer time. This quote calls me out when I feel like slipping in those areas!

What services do you provide?

On the Under Thy Roof blog, and on my social media, I seek to share about Catholic family life in our domestic home our big Church home. It has also turned into encouraging healthier attitudes about self-care for moms and women in general. As my motherhood has developed into a wider creative experience with theater and dance thrown into the mix, I hope to widen assumptions about what it means to be an at-home parent and what it means to be a young Catholic woman living in the world.
I am available to write for faith-based or motherhood websites, and do sponsored posts. Rates are available upon request.

I am currently on a maternity leave of sorts from theater and dance production until after this baby is born in late September, but I will be returning to the audition circuit in the Winter or Spring!

What is your contact info?

My blog can be found at www.underthyroof.blogspot.com and I can always be reached by email at underthyroof@gmail.com.

Pam Spano

I’m a convert to the Catholic faith.  Though my mother was raised Catholic and my father was Lutheran, neither of my parents practiced their faith and left it up to me to decide how I wanted to worship (or not worship at all).  It was difficult growing up like that.  God revealed himself to me over the years, but I didn’t know how to worship Him.  I attended many different kinds of churches, including the Catholic Church, but nothing was resonating with me during my childhood, teen years or up to my mid-twenties.

 

I met my husband on a blind date.  Neither of us was really interested in meeting the other, but we agreed to go out.  As we dated, I was intrigued by this man who still went to church every Sunday and actually followed his faith.  At one point, I sarcastically said to him, “I suppose if we were to get married, you would want me to convert?”  He thought for a moment, and said, “Well, I am worried about your soul.”  To this day his cousin claims that is the best pick-up line ever!

 

After 35 years of marriage and three children, I find myself writing a Catholic blog.  Our God is indeed a God of surprises!

Where can you be found on Social Media?

 

Facebook: Being Catholic. Really

Twitter: Pam Spano @CatholicReally

Favorite Prayer and/or quote:

In my early years as a convert, it was:

 1 Corinthians 2:9, 

       But as it is written:

“What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard,

and what has not entered the human heart,

what God has prepared for those who love him.

 

That’s my spiritual journey in one verse!  It still speaks to me after all these years.

What services do you provide?

My blog came out of wanting to share my faith journey and encourage others in theirs.  What happened was I was being taught my faith by those who read my words and shared their stories.  It seems surreal even now.

Right now I am accepting freelance writing opportunities!  Please contact me for my rates!

*** Additional note from Amy:  Pam posts often combine faith and humor!  She is sure to make you chuckle once in awhile!

For example, you may see something like this on your Facebook feed:

Contact info:

Pamspano@aol.com

Want to follow more inspiring Catholics on Social Media?  Check out these earlier posts!

Catholic Social Media Influencers: Volume 1

Catholic Social Media Influencers: Volume 2

Catholic Social Media Influencers: Volume 3

From California to London: Catholic Social Media Influencers, Volume 4 

Inspiring Ministries for Everyday Catholics: Catholic Social Media Influencers, Volume 5

 

The post Finding Faith and Hope on Your Device this Summer: Catholic Social Media Influencers, Volume 6 appeared first on Prayer Wine Chocolate.