Happy Holidays 2016

What's up? Enjoying the holiday season?

Go ahead, indulge. Use the new gadgets, eat with all your heart.

Most of all, spread love.

~billymacdeus

Thanksgiving 2016

This year's Year-End Thanksgiving inside the Iglesia Ni Cristo resonates again with so much love and humility. It depicts why a member of the church of Christ gets to be grateful not only on this special day, but a collective reminiscent of the year that is about to pass.

 

It's that same re-occurring feeling whenever the holy spirit is so close, which makes you humbled by its  presence, makes you actually cry with joy because of His compassion.

It makes you realize that the year is to close its chapters again to open for new ones - that leaves you rushing back to the remembrance on what you've been through this year - may it be pain and or happiness.

 

And it's at this point, while the singing of hymns were rendered that you realized, how you were able to continue on, as if the trials and tests of this life is insurmountable, but then, grace came … and you were able to survive.

 

As you are reading this, it wasn't only you, who went through the storms of life, or maybe going through it, but even I, a chosen one, was not spared. We had our share of sadness, our share of happiness and our share of first hand experiences of how mighty He is, how compassionate He is, above all, how He profess his endless love to everyone.

 

Indeed! It's a great way to end the year, through Thanksgiving - not only this time though but all throughout our lives.

 

Happy Thanksgiving Brethren..

 

5 Ways to Lessen Facebook Addiction

We have to admit, Facebook is the goto app for most of us, Filipinos. As soon as we open our smartphones, we tap the Facebook App so naturally, as if, it's already wired for us to tap and see the notifications, or just scroll through the feed expectedly.

Most probably, as soon as we wake up, (since, most people have their phones beside them when they sleep) the first thing we check are our devices - check for messages or missed calls and then automatically we hit the FB app and boom! you're immersed again checking your newsfeed.

We're also guilty of having FB-time during our dates with friends and family, even during eat-outs or at home eating with the family - the phone is with us all the while, sidetripping and checking FB unnecessarily, instead of savoring the moment of real facetime with loved ones or friends.

The major reason? I think it's Chismis, unknowingly - just in our subconscious. But to put it bluntly in perspective - i think the main reason why we check FB feeds is to be updated with other people's lives - and the interaction is realized via the Like, Heart, Angry, Wow, Sad buttons, not to mention the ability to put comments. 

Yet, there are ways to lessen your FB TIME - the 5 ways below have been tested, and it can be easily executed, pair it with discipline and follow the 21-day consistency so that it'll become a habit.


1. Turn-Off the Notifications
The best way to keep you out from opening the app is to not receive notifications at all. You can do this by going to Notifications Settings on your device. Goto the FB app and disable notifications, even "badges", "sounds" and "showing on lockscreen" options. This is quite effective because it is good as DONT DISTURB mode. You can then implement rule # 5 easily.

settings on iOS Devices

settings on Android Devices

2. Weed-Out Those Whom You Follow and Be Selective on Your "Follow" List
If you don't want to lose friends and still maintain connections to people, use the "unfollow" feature, that means you are still friends with them but keeps them out from your newsfeed.

3. Divert Your Attention to Learning Apps 
It's true, we can't help but open FB during our leisure time or free time - commuting, driving, or just simply passing time. Yet you're in command and it's your choice - be a gawker (@facebook) or are you the type who want to learn?

Then jive in to mind-exercise apps or learning apps such as DuoLingo (learn a new language), Crossword, Puzzles, or just simply open your iBooks or Podcast App. 

Fasho, you'll add wisdom and creativity to your self by diverting to these learning apps - free and easy to use.




4. Delete the App and Resort to Browser Mode (on your Smartphone)
This is one thing that provides a delaying tactic in opening Facebook - if you delete the app itself and use it in Browser, (Chrome, Safari, Opera or whatever your smartphone's default browser is) there is a huge possibility that you'll end up not doing it, because you'll have to enter your Username & password, plus, the UI (user interface) in the browser mode is not as seamless as the app. That'll make you easily tire of scrolling thru feeds or visiting multiple friends profiles. 




5. Set a Calendar Entry for Your FB Usage
If your addiction to FB is really worse, i highly recommend that you limit your FB Time by creating your own set of reminder or blocking a window from your daily routine allocating FB Time. 2 hours should be sufficient everyday but set the calendar invite in a staggered basis. Example - 30 minutes in the morning, 30 minutes during lunchtime, 30 minutes in the afternoon and 30 minutes before dinner.
Why Calendar? Because your calendar App will notify you and gives you reminder as well.

Let's regulate it, we should be the one in-control to avoid excessive usage of this social app and focus on the real events happening around us; where the 5 senses can be used and can benefit us majorly in the real socialization aspect of our lives.

Yeah! Believe it or not, when you're engulfed with Facebooking, your sense of seeing and hearing largely utilized. While the the rest of the senses are shut up temporarily - our aim is to enliven and constantly use those senses. Senses that were given to us... human beings to live a more, profound life.



See you on my next episode about -- The Reasons Why We are Addicted To Facebook


~billymacdeus