Don’t like, share or retweet this post

 

‘Lovely photo of the kids, stick it on Facebook’

‘Great quote – I’ll tweet it straight away’

‘Profound message this Sunday, I’d better share it with my friends who all need to hear it’

 

Social media has changed our lives. I am constantly coming across profound quotes, amazing insights and interesting ideas on Twitter, Facebook and the blogosphere. And I find myself wanting to immediately share what I have heard or read with my friends.

But wait. Is there a danger to this? I’d like to suggest 3:

1.       Amazing truth becomes mundane

When I have read my 50^th 140 character insight or 10^th blog post of the day I have been flooded with words and ideas. Even a few years ago I might come across one or two books or articles a week that might impact my life. Max.

 

And yet now great truths and beautiful things have become, well, normal. I skim over them. I glance at potentially life-changing lessons, evaluate them for a nano-second, and move on to the next thing.

 

It’s constant. And it’s dangerous. Because we are meant to stop and think, ponder and give thanks for amazing truths, not miss them because we are so saturated with great wisdom.

2.       I compare myself to others

‘I couldn’t write something like that’ or ‘I don’t read as widely as them’ can easily follow me reading an impressive tweet or blog post. I might begin to categorise the author as someone worth listening to or not.

Someone to follow or to unfollow.

To like or dislike.

Someone to idolise even, or to denigrate as having little to say to me.

 

So in another way I potentially miss something that I really do need to listen to and learn.

3.       I am too quick to share what I need to think about

We all see this don’t we?

- The live blogs from conferences.
- Linking to that great sermon on selfishness I’ve just heard because I hope my mate Dave sees it and he needs could do with a lesson on selfish.
- Checking how many people have read my latest post or favourite my recent tweet.

Our culture is one which instantly shares any experience, photo or thought to our watching followers and friends. The danger is, we consider everything we receive needs to be shared with others, whether it is a photo of your kid’s first sit on the potty or a great quote from a talk you’ve just heard.

 

But what if that truth, or that moment, is one that you decide to savour just for yourself?

What if God wants to speak to YOU about YOUR selfishness and not Dave’s?

 

So let me challenge you.

Do you fall into any of these traps?

This week take something you would otherwise share with others and just keep it to yourself. Ask God to speak to YOU. And enjoy it.

Oh, and please don’t like, share or retweet this post….unless you think someone else might find it helpful that is…

 

" . ... whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." Philippians 4:8