Social Media Usage
Social Media Usage
Paul speaks of that which is lawful, but not helpful nor edifying. He speaks of that which is right to do, but which he will not allow himself to brought under its power. Right actions can be used in a wrong manner. Now, before the wall is put up by those reading, allow me to explain. Social media and usage of the internet, in general, are not inherently wrong in and of themselves, I believe these fit rightly into matters of liberty and lawfulness. As with anything that is lawful, and especially in matters of liberty, these are perfectly right so long as we do not stray off into areas of abuse or misuse. We can take a tool, like the internet, that in and of itself is not wrong - it's just a tool/medium for other things - and use it in ways that are sinful (pornography, gossip, evil speech, etc.). This is misuse and abuse. Now, once we stray from the boundaries which God has set - whether in matters of liberty or matters of doctrine - we then err and fall into sin. Simply put, right things can be used in wrong ways. I believe we as adults understand this simple fact so I will go no further in presenting caveats to what I am about to say.
How much of our time is spent bowing at the altar of our electronic devices? How much time do we spend idle as we bury our noses in our smartphones and ignore the world around us? How often are we saddled with feelings of despair, covetousness, envy, and low feelings because of how engaged we are in the lives of others online and the almost sickly personal stake in how many people "like" something we post? It really is sad when we admit how invested we are in the digital opinions of others versus what's happening in the real world of our daily lives. Do we put as much energy and personal stake in seeking the approval of God by our actions? Sure, God won't be clicking an actual "Like" button on your daily activities, but we can know if He approves if we're truly reading, studying, and meditating on His word as we ought. By comparison to our daily social media usage, how much time would you say you spend in God's word, in prayer, in reflection, in meditation?
Consider if we put only a fraction of the time spent online, daily, into Bible study and teaching the lost. We could even combine the two and use these mediums to accomplish both, and what a beautiful usage of that tool before us; rather than using the internet/social media for self-indulgence and self-promotion, we use it for God's glory. Do we treat our computers and smartphones for what they are, tools, or do we give them much more prominence than they should have in our lives?
When you have a spare minute, do you pull out your phone (or tablet, or computer) and run swiftly to your beloved social media? Why? No, really, let's answer that for ourselves honestly...why? That's a whole 'nother post I know, but how about we each take some time to soberly consider why we run immediately to our electronics. Once we've identified the "why" let's then work on finding a replacement for it, or at least using it productively. Consider whipping that phone out every spare minute to read God's word on your Bible app, now wouldn't that be a great usage of this tool we carry with us?! Think about it.
Now, back to social media, what drives our usage? Is it the need to be heard? The desire to feel included? The desire to fill time that would otherwise make us uncomfortable? Is it to avoid social situations? Is it merely out of habit? Is it to "pass the time"? What is your reason, what is mine? Are we using such sites as tools, or have they become our lives, what we're about, what makes us feel complete, makes us feel "liked"? Friends, I think social media is/can be unhealthy in a lot of ways; to the soul, to the heart, to our relationships, to our personal development and improvement as people. When we spend such inordinate time online, what do we think we're doing with our lives? That's time we won't get back. Time we won't get back with our spouse, with our kids, with our friends, with God's creation, and most importantly with our God! We need to soberly consider why we're using it in the first place. Recognize that this is a tool, that's it; a tool to get a job done. Let's use it as such and get busy living our lives away from these screens. When your life comes to a close, will you glory in how many things you "pinned", how many people knew your business and "Liked" your posts, how many "re-tweets" you had, etc.? Honestly, what are we doing with our lives outside of this tool of the internet? How much value do we place on this tool? The amount of time we spend with it and how we use it answers that question for us. Friends, let's use the tools we have at our disposal to further the cause of the Lord, use them to get a job done and then move on, let's use them as they should be used and not live our lives on them. As the verse above says, let us not "be brought under the power" of that which is a matter of liberty. There's so much work to be done, and we have only so much time to do it. Let's get to work, friends.
"All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being." 1Cor.10:23-24
"All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any." 1Cor.6:12
Paul speaks of that which is lawful, but not helpful nor edifying. He speaks of that which is right to do, but which he will not allow himself to brought under its power. Right actions can be used in a wrong manner. Now, before the wall is put up by those reading, allow me to explain. Social media and usage of the internet, in general, are not inherently wrong in and of themselves, I believe these fit rightly into matters of liberty and lawfulness. As with anything that is lawful, and especially in matters of liberty, these are perfectly right so long as we do not stray off into areas of abuse or misuse. We can take a tool, like the internet, that in and of itself is not wrong - it's just a tool/medium for other things - and use it in ways that are sinful (pornography, gossip, evil speech, etc.). This is misuse and abuse. Now, once we stray from the boundaries which God has set - whether in matters of liberty or matters of doctrine - we then err and fall into sin. Simply put, right things can be used in wrong ways. I believe we as adults understand this simple fact so I will go no further in presenting caveats to what I am about to say.
How much of our time is spent bowing at the altar of our electronic devices? How much time do we spend idle as we bury our noses in our smartphones and ignore the world around us? How often are we saddled with feelings of despair, covetousness, envy, and low feelings because of how engaged we are in the lives of others online and the almost sickly personal stake in how many people "like" something we post? It really is sad when we admit how invested we are in the digital opinions of others versus what's happening in the real world of our daily lives. Do we put as much energy and personal stake in seeking the approval of God by our actions? Sure, God won't be clicking an actual "Like" button on your daily activities, but we can know if He approves if we're truly reading, studying, and meditating on His word as we ought. By comparison to our daily social media usage, how much time would you say you spend in God's word, in prayer, in reflection, in meditation?
Consider if we put only a fraction of the time spent online, daily, into Bible study and teaching the lost. We could even combine the two and use these mediums to accomplish both, and what a beautiful usage of that tool before us; rather than using the internet/social media for self-indulgence and self-promotion, we use it for God's glory. Do we treat our computers and smartphones for what they are, tools, or do we give them much more prominence than they should have in our lives?
When you have a spare minute, do you pull out your phone (or tablet, or computer) and run swiftly to your beloved social media? Why? No, really, let's answer that for ourselves honestly...why? That's a whole 'nother post I know, but how about we each take some time to soberly consider why we run immediately to our electronics. Once we've identified the "why" let's then work on finding a replacement for it, or at least using it productively. Consider whipping that phone out every spare minute to read God's word on your Bible app, now wouldn't that be a great usage of this tool we carry with us?! Think about it.
Now, back to social media, what drives our usage? Is it the need to be heard? The desire to feel included? The desire to fill time that would otherwise make us uncomfortable? Is it to avoid social situations? Is it merely out of habit? Is it to "pass the time"? What is your reason, what is mine? Are we using such sites as tools, or have they become our lives, what we're about, what makes us feel complete, makes us feel "liked"? Friends, I think social media is/can be unhealthy in a lot of ways; to the soul, to the heart, to our relationships, to our personal development and improvement as people. When we spend such inordinate time online, what do we think we're doing with our lives? That's time we won't get back. Time we won't get back with our spouse, with our kids, with our friends, with God's creation, and most importantly with our God! We need to soberly consider why we're using it in the first place. Recognize that this is a tool, that's it; a tool to get a job done. Let's use it as such and get busy living our lives away from these screens. When your life comes to a close, will you glory in how many things you "pinned", how many people knew your business and "Liked" your posts, how many "re-tweets" you had, etc.? Honestly, what are we doing with our lives outside of this tool of the internet? How much value do we place on this tool? The amount of time we spend with it and how we use it answers that question for us. Friends, let's use the tools we have at our disposal to further the cause of the Lord, use them to get a job done and then move on, let's use them as they should be used and not live our lives on them. As the verse above says, let us not "be brought under the power" of that which is a matter of liberty. There's so much work to be done, and we have only so much time to do it. Let's get to work, friends.
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