[Real]: The 30-Day Social Media Movement

By Leah Young

What if we were real with one another over social media? How different would our lives look to those following? Is it possible that our authenticity and transparency would spark change? [REAL] documents a 30-day photo challenge designed to help you personally refocus and to impact others lives by being real with one another over social media. It removes the filters, the manipulation, the cover-ups, the games, the facades, and all the gaudy glamour. It challenges us to be authentic, thereby giving other people the freedom to be authentic. Read how it impacted the lives of those who dared to take the challenge!

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: May 5, 2016
• ISBN: 9781512738162

Leah Young

Working in ministry is a tremendous blessing, but also a tremendous responsibility. The pressure to “have it all together” looms over you like a thick cloud. During my time working at a church, I learned more about this than I planned on. I was given the opportunity to get to know people, especially young people. Mentoring them and helping them discover who they are in Christ led me to the realization that teens and young adults today are more broken than the church realizes. And it’s only getting worse. What they’re really searching for is hidden behind the persona they present on social media. Their desires to be accepted, wanted, and loved are all buried beneath vague statuses, photoshopped pictures, and 140 characters of subtle cries for help. That’s when God gave me The [REAL] 30-Day Challenge. It started with just me, but soon spread like fire. Like most people, I’m a perfectionist, and I operate out of that insecurity to perform in order to be accepted. After releasing the challenge to the rest of the social media world, I soon discovered that I wasn’t alone. That’s the beautiful part about this book and this challenge - the revelation that our imperfections have the power to unite us. I currently live in Pennsylvania with my husband, Andrew. I enjoy writing, leading worship, and getting to know people for who they really are. I believe in authenticity and love documenting stories that have the power to heal, empower, and unite people.

Book preview

Copyright © 2016 Leah Young.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

1 [phone]

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-5127-3817-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-3818-6 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-3816-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016906169

WestBow Press rev. date: 5/5/2016

Contents

Introduction:

Where It All Started

What is [REAL]?

The Breakdown

Day 1:  Fresh Face Selfie

The Response

Day 2:  An Unspoken Dream

The Response

Day 3: Someone I  Secretly Admire

The Response

Day 4:  What Really Happened

The Response

Day 5:  Outside My Front Door

The Response

Day 6:  Secret Jam

The Response

Day 7:  Portrait of a Real Person

The Response

Day 8:  My View at Work

The Response

Day 9:  A Bad Habit

The Response

Day 10:  A Weakness

The Response

Day 11:  Lip Service – What I Fail to Do

The Response

Day 12:  My Love Language

The Response

Day 13:  An Addiction [PAST]

The Response

Day 14: An Addiction

[PRESENT]

The Response

Day 15:  A Regret

The Response

Day 16:  A Family Member I Admire

The Response

Day 17:  A Transformation

The Response

Day 18:  Something I Grieve Over

The Response

Day 19:  A Walk in My Shoes

The Response

Day 20:  What Inspires Me

The Response

Day 21:  First Thought in the Morning

The Response

Day 22:  Favorite Scripture, Quote, or Lyric

The Response

Day 23:  OOTD – Outfit of the Day

The Response

Day 24:  A Mirror Pic - Transparent Moment

The Response

Day 25:  A True Celebrity

The Response

Day 26:  An Activity to De-Stress

The Response

Day 27:  A Real Workout Face

The Response

Day 28:  My Real Hair

The Response

Day 29:  An Insecurity

The Response

Day 30:  My Smile

The Response

The Result

Conclusion:

Take the Challenge

Resources

Thank You…

Lord - this book and this movement would not exist without You. Thank You for giving us an identity.

To those who took this challenge with me in the very beginning, and to all those who are taking it or have yet to take it – you are the REAL deal. It’s an honor to tell your stories.

To Andrew – you’ve been there from the start, and you’re still here. Thank you for never giving up on me and for believing in my story.

I love you.

Introduction:

Where It All Started

You can’t tell anyone what I’m about to tell you.

Ok, I promise, I won’t.

Like, seriously … NO ONE!

I would never. Just tell me, what’s going on?

I can’t even believe I’m about to tell you this.

Why not? You know you can trust me.

I know that but it’s still scary. Not that you’ll tell anyone, but what you’ll think of me after I tell you. That’s why I don’t want anyone to know. I don’t want them to see me differently.

* * *

This was a real conversation with a real person.

I won’t document her name or the rest of the conversation, but those last few words she said to me will always be with me: I don’t want them to see me differently. I’ve been in the same place my friend was in that moment, feeling isolated and terrified of rejection. Maybe you’ve been there too?

The near-to-worst part about that conversation was that I thought I knew who this person was; I thought I had her pinned down. The worst part about it was that I thought she knew who I was too. I was painfully mistaken.

Here’s what I can tell you about this girl I thought I knew. She was the life of the party, the carefree, in your face, I don’t-care-what-anyone-thinks-about-me kind of girl. The girl who could make you laugh till you cried. The girl who came into church every Sunday, sang at the top of her lungs during the song set, raised her hands to pray out loud, and smiled at people as she walked through the lobby. Despite a rough past, she was making strides towards a bright future.

Several months later, we stood beneath flickering lights outside of a coffee shop. She held back tears of regret, admitting mistakes she thought no one else would dare ever make to an individual she thought was completely perfect.

Here’s who she thought I was, and who you might have thought I was too if we had chanced to meet:

My name is Leah.

I’ve grown up going to church because it’s what my family has always done, from my parents to all nine of my siblings. Yes, nine siblings. We’re all one, giant, happy family. Every single one of us is unique and gifted, which only adds to my social ranking. I mean, if you come from a good, Christian family tree, you must be a bright, red apple, ripe for selection, right?

From the time I could form recognizable syllables, I was singing … or, at the time, melodically yelling. But as the years progressed, so did my ability to harmonize and project notes. That ability soon landed me the job of my dreams. Immediately out of a drama-free, homeschooled high-school education, I found myself accepting a position as the Worship Director for my local church. If that doesn’t earn a good, Christian girl a few gold stars, I don’t know what does!

As I did my best to juggle song sets and rehearsals, I also managed to pursue a degree in English to further add to my list of growing accomplishments. Even with my over-committed scheduled, I somehow didn’t let my social life suffer.

I dated around all in the pursuit of Prince Charming’s second cousin. At least then I could find the perfect mate and wouldn’t be crucified for setting my standards too high. At one time, I even sported a sparkly purity ring just to rub in the faces of all the singles out there.

My other social hobbies included, but were not limited to, a quaint little word I liked to misuse: mentorship. Just about every week, I met a new young woman at a coffee shop or took them out to breakfast where they could cry over past mistakes and I could respond with, "How do you feel about that?" Very therapeutic, I’m sure.

Aside from my Sunday morning responsibilities, I grew eight other arms (metaphorically speaking, of course), and started helping out in various places around the church to put myself out there in the religious spotlight. Youth ministry, young adult ministry, administration, missions trips, videography, set design – you name it, my name was either on the sign-up sheet or underneath the title of Leader.

Not only was I on the stage, underneath bright lights and illuminated choruses of our congregation’s favorite songs, I was underneath the spotlight of everyone’s attention. I waved my Christian girl magic wand over the social media platforms I frequented, mainly Facebook (www.facebook.com) and Instagram (www.instagram.com). I didn’t get on the Twitter (www.twitter.com) bandwagon until later. It was over all of these that you could either read passionate statuses or look at filtered pictures of who I was.

Me. Me. Me.

Here’s a picture with my loving family. Here’s a picture with friends as we head out to a three-day, Christian conference. Here’s a picture of my new Beth Moore Bible study, while I casually sip on my white chocolate mocha. Here’s a picture of the orphans I sponsor in Africa. Here’s a picture of my pristine outfits, complete with a blemish-free complexion, even first thing in the morning. Here I am working out because my body is a temple. Here I am traveling to another country because I must go into all the world. Here I am saving the world because ...

My name is Leah, and I’m perfect.

That’s the person you would see if you knew me because that’s whom I would let you see.

After considering all of this being shoved in people’s faces, it shouldn’t seem odd that I would get a text from this life-of-the-party girl, asking to meet with me at a coffee