Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Facebook and Silence


I recently took a "hiatus" from facebook.  I decided to step away from something that seemed to consume my time.   I didn't realize how hard it was going to be at first, but once I got past the first few days, I realized I was just trying to break a really bad habit.  The silence that ensued was refreshing.

Facebook is a habit.  Just like smoking a cigarette, a person who is addicted to Facebook has to have a "hit" multiple times a day.  How has this happened? How have we become so addicted to the approval of others?  We post a picture and look to see how many "likes" we get.  Who likes our picture, who comments, etc.  Its a place to seek acceptance from people instead of seeking the one who is the Ultimate Friend.  

We follow pages, people, groups, causes on Facebook.  We justify why we spend so much time looking into other peoples lives instead of looking deeper into our own.  Jesus wants our time.  He wants our attention.  We claim we give it to Him because we follow "religious" pages and read their posts.  Its like a "devotion".  What Jesus wants is to meet us in the silence.  Each day we should set aside time for Him.   We don't need to fill our lives with all the noise that comes with Facebook.  Griping, grumbling, complaining - people do that and want sympathy, want comments from others to justify and confirm that their feelings are valid.  Instead of taking our worries, cares and concerns to the only one who can make them better, we post them on Facebook and secretly hope for affirmation from others that our feelings are valid.  We want something from others that we can only get from our Heavenly Father.  Comfort, peace, solace.

So, I challenge you.  If you can't seem to give up Facebook, would you consider lessening your time on Facebook?  Would you consider changing the types of posts you make?  Would you consider changing who you follow and why?  If you are addicted to Facebook, what would it take to free you from its grip?  Wouldn't you rather get your validation and acceptance from the One who loves you unconditionally instead of from others?   So many relationships have been ruined because of Facebook, but the one relationship you can't afford to lose is the one you need to have with your Father.

No comments:

Post a Comment