I have done many great things in my life that conflicted with the great aims I had set myself – and something has always set me on the true path again.
Alexander Solzhenitsyn, The Oak & the Calf
Has God ever checked you?
Not physically, as if He were skating across the ice to stop your breakaway on net; but, has He ever checked you spiritually, deep in your soul?
For quite a while, I’ve debated about shutting it all down – Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, etc. To be free from notifications and the anxiety that wells up in thinking about how and when and whom to respond to, to be free from the mindless scrolling that consumes more time than I’d like to admit, to be free from watching friends & family fight…
But I’ve hesitated, I’ve resisted the urge; for I recognize how I long for the sense of community each platform provides. Community that seems ever so valuable in days of quarantine & limited physical gatherings. And so, I’ve come up with reasons excuses to stay digitally connected, all the while feeling the emotional burdens of doing so growing deeper and deeper within my soul.
But the time has come, God has indeed checked me, and I will be cutting back severely on my social media interactions.
Now, I know that some of you reading, if you decide to read, might interpret this as: look at Joe, he’s looking for pity; if he’s not emotionally mature enough for Facebook, is he really emotionally mature enough to be my pastor; finally, I don’t have to read his opposing viewpoints anymore; Joe can’t handle tough conversations; or, typical snowflake-millennial, crying out, looking for attention…
And if you do interpret it in one of those ways, or a similar way, my heart goes out to you. It’s this weariness that weighs down my soul.
This is a personal decision for me, but one I decided to step out from the shadows to share and invite you along in the journey with me, for maybe God is speaking something similar to you. May we pray for eyes to see and ears to hear the Spirit speaking to us. And so, here it goes…
For the past 4+ months, as we’ve navigated our way through the Covid-19 Pandemic – yes, it is a pandemic, and not some US election conspiracy theory – I’ve seen and experienced both the incredible highs and lows of social media. It was such a joy to my soul early on in our Zoom-church time to connect with my church family! And more than ever before, I’ve recognized the emotional weight and impact it has had on me – not so much in the anticipation and anxiety rooted in the desire for likes, comments, retweets, & double-taps, but in seeing how these great platforms for connection are being used in damaging, disparaging, & divisive ways.
As such, I’ve reflected on the repeated prayers and calls from Jesus and Paul throughout the New Testament for unity within the Church, despite its diversity…
Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.
John 17:11b
Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they may be sanctified in truth…that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe you have sent me. The glory you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
John 17:17-19, 21-23
I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Ephesians 4:1-3
Only to open up my social media feeds to see beloved churched friends and family behaving and interacting in such disunity…
And I readily admit that I haven’t always been perfect in this my entire life – have any of us? But I will counter with the fact that I do believe in the prophetic nature of the pastoral call to lead us back to Kingdom-centered living. And while it maybe hasn’t been communicated as clearly and concisely as I’d like, it’s where my heart and passion lie.
As one who loves the Church and her imperfect beauty, I long to see us known for unity. As I read recently on Twitter, if Jesus could unite a terrorist (zealot) and a tax collector in his intimate group of 12, he can most certainly unite even the strongest democrats and republicans. May we allow Jesus to reorient us from “me” as the center of our worlds to “He” as the center of our being. As I heard Pastor Rich Villodas say recently, “There’s a difference between being in the world for God and being in God for the world.” May we live out the latter in its fullness.
Last week at FCN, Pastor Ron shared on Psalm 27 and what forms us. Psalm 27:4 has been a key component of my morning devotions for most of the year.
One thing I have asked of the LORD, that I will seek after:
to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the LORD,
and to inquire in his temple.
And God’s check on my soul was that my social media feeds were forming me more than I cared to admit, and it’s time for a break. There are wounds that need to heal, passions that need to be rekindled, and conversations that I long to have, but can’t take place properly on social media platforms.
And so, it’s time to sign off, to become digitally un-social. And as I think about it, there’s a great sense of freedom and fresh air, but also a sense of lament in not keeping up with friends and family. My Facebook will remain active, but I will only be using it solely for the purpose of running the FCN, BreakThru, and Flint Area Team World Vision pages. I will remain on Messenger, Twitter, & Strava, but again, in limited capacities. I hope to write more on here, too, as I continue to pursue my passions & ministerial call.
And so, as I think about the great aims I have for myself, the calling God has so deeply rooted within my soul, I see how social media has become something that’s derailed me, and I’m grateful for God’s grace in picking me up and setting me on the right path again.
The Musings of a Humble Servant 