Fake News. He said, she said. #MeToo. Supreme Court nominations. And so many more controversial topics surround us every day. Tap on your news feed app, open up your web browser, or turn on your TV and we are constantly bombarded with controversial subjects and arguments from opposing sides. But what often takes the heated debates to a whole new level…social media.
It’s called “social” media for a reason, but recently it seems as though it is becoming social “fight club”. All too often I have logged in to Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram only to be barraged with a litany of arguments for or against an issue. While people posting their thoughts, beliefs, and responses to issues of our day does not bother me that much (what kind of American would I be if I was not for freedom of speech), what bothers me most is the incivility of those who claim to be followers of Christ toward other humans made in the image of God and even more so fellow believers in Christ.
During this internal frustration, I ran across an amazing article that dealt specifically with these issues. Kelly Minter wrote an extremely helpful article entitled, “How Christians Pursue Unity on Social Media“. I found it to be convicting, challenging, and a much-needed charge for the church currently. I hope you will too.
Enjoy the article and as always be with the Lord’s people on the Lord’s day!
I had plugged my phone into the charger about an hour earlier and headed back downstairs to continue playing with the kids. When I came back to check on my phone’s battery status as well as receive any messages I may had missed, I realized a grave mistake I had made. While I had plugged the charger into the phone, I had made the assumption that the charger was connected to the power outlet. Needless to say, I was poorly disappointed when I found out my phone had not charged at all in the last hour because I was disconnected.
As we saw last week, disconnecting can be good, rejuvenating, and probably much more needed in today’s “connected” world than every before. However, the reality is if we disconnect from relationship, people, and community bad things can and do happen. So how can church leaders and Christ followers stay connected during the summer months of disconnection?
Thankfully, Brady Shearer and the team over at Pro Church Tools have provided a really awesome guide to stay connected. In their post they give 7 Social Media Templates for Churches. These are awesome ways to stay connected as a church family while everyone gets a little disconnection to rejuvenate during summer months.
Enjoy the templates and as always be with the Lord’s people on the Lord’s day!
Social Media affects everything. It is everywhere in our world:
at home,
at the store,
at school,
at restaurants,
at work, and
in our pockets.
Social media is with us and around us all the time. The truth is…IT IS AFFECTING US! But how? The social media gurus want us to think that social media is strictly positive, and great for everyone and everything. They want us to think that social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, LinkedIn, Snapchat, and texting) are all about building relationships and passing on information.
But is social media really causing us to relate more and give good information? If we are honest with ourselves, I think we can all say we have at least once felt, that while we are overly connected by social media, there is still an underlying feeling of being alone, depressed, and unconnected. In light of this reality, we are in the middle of a five week study here at Preacherontherun to examine how social media affects us. We are looking at five areas in which social media affects our views: relationships, words, time, self, and truth. Today we continue with Social Media: How it affects our view of Words.
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but…WORDS will never hurt me.” We have all sung that song or had it told to us when we were upset or hurt because of something someone said. Unfortunately, the truth that song purports really isn’t truth…it is a lie! Words can/do hurt and they have great power. James 3:5-10 tells us that the tongue is “small yet it boasts of great things” and that it is “a fire, a world of unrighteousness…staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of the life…” Those are some powerful words. These verses and many others throughout Proverbs reveal the truth about and power of the tongue.
In real life when we are face to face with people, we will rarely say pointed or harsh truths without padding them with some sort of love, affection, and encouragement. However, when we get on social media, it seems as if the rules no longer apply. One example of this is the Seattle Seahawk’s cornerback, Richard Sherman’s, interview after the Seahawks won in the NFC championship game. Sherman essentially smash talked a receiver from the 49ers and inevitably made some remarks that he later regretted. The worse part is, that he was on live TV as well as being recorded all over the world. So within minutes the clip was on Youtube, and what Sherman said could not be taken back. It was out there for all to see because of social media. He could not retract it, edit it, or delete it, because others had the video in their hands; so all he could do was watch and apologize later. That is just one of many examples of how social media affects our view of words. People can lose their job over something they post on Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube. Worse yet, people can and have been sued because of what they put on Facebook and Twitter. But our world does not like that. The social media sites want us to think that what we put there is our property and no one can do anything about it. But it is public and therefore we are to be held accountable for it.
As believers God holds us to high standards in our speech and words. Ephesians 4:29 states, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear”. Why do we think that this command from God does not apply to social media?
But some people with social media will say, “It’s not against the law to speak my mind and let my thoughts be known”. This is true, but listen to what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:23-24, “All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful. ‘All things are lawful,’ but not all things build up. Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor”. Is that the attitude we have when we post on Facebook, Twitter, or Youtube?
This is not merely a matter of preference or even respect, but of understanding where we will be standing one day! “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak” (Matthew 12:36). Every word they speak! And God said that His written Bible is His word. So He will hold us to the same standard. Our writing is synonymous with our speaking.
As I argued from the beginning, social media affects everything. And one of the major areas of our lives and thinking it affects is our words. Social media has changed the way we speak with and about one another. But the final question must be: are we utilizing our social media to build up others and proclaim Jesus Christ or just to get our opinion out there? Stop by next week where we will discuss how Social Media affects our view on time. In case you missed it Social Media: How it affects us (Relationships) you can find it here.
“Gossip is a serious problem. It is a problem in the home, in the workplace, in the local church and in broader evangelicalism. It is a problem in the blogosphere, in social media, and beyond.” But…”the Bible is concerned less with the words that are spoken and more with the heart and mouth that generate such destruction.” Insightful summary of an insightful book. Interesting to note all 5 gossips spring from a fear that is answered only in the Gospel!
As always be with the Lord’s people on the Lord’s day!
