By Kim W.It was a joy to recently share with the ladies ways that we can walk worthy in the area of technology use, such as Facebook, Twitter, Netflix, etc. We are commanded to do all things for God's glory, and this would include our use of these modern day indulgences. It is literally a way of life now, and as women, we need to be aware of the pros and cons of Facebook and other forms of media.
Tim Challies has a blog post entitled 700 Billion Minutes, which is the amount of time active Facebook users spent on Facebook in 2010 in ONE month. Yes, that means for the 500 million active Facebook users in that year, they spent 1.3 million years on Facebook in one month...they spent 18,000 lifetimes on Facebook in 30 days. Unbelievable! Today, there are about 1.6 billion users of Facebook, so we can do the math and figure out how much of our precious time is spent on just Facebook alone. Those 700 billion minutes were taken from what? For the most part, these minutes came from time from our everday lives. What has Facebook replaced? Interesting question to think on. I will address the answer to that in a later post.
There are some benefits to Facebook and it can be used for God's glory. I would like to begin this series on the "pros" of Facebook. Please notice as I list them, that all of the pros are others-focused.
Other- and God-focused pros of using Facebook:
- We can have instant information so that we can know better how to minister to others.
- We can know very quickly how to pray for others...we receive immediate prayer requests on Facebook - some of them very urgent - and we can stop what we are doing to pray. Along those same lines, we can know specifics on the trials and difficult times other are going through. Also, we can rejoice with others and praise God for good times, answered prayers, and joyful moments.
- We can encourage others. I especially appreciate those who encourage others on Facebook by using Scripture. We can build others up in the Lord with encouraging words. Proverbs 16:24 tells us that "Gracious words are like a honeycomb...sweetness to the soul and health to the body."
- We can share information, which could involve upcoming events.
- We can share biblically-based quotes and Scripture to cause others to focus their hearts and minds on the Lord. I appreciate how a couple of my friends always begin their day with quoting Scripture on Facebook. I also am thankful for another friend's thought-provoking quotes that always draw my mind to God.
- We can stay in close contact with others. It might be family that lives far away. Grandparents can easily see pictures of grandchildren...relatives and friends can find out what is going on in the lives of those they miss. We can stay in contact with friends who move away.
- Facebook allows for us to be exposed to more biblical teaching and allows us to link to good teaching for others to read...links to excellent sermons, edifying articles, and blogs that teach biblical content. But with that, we also need to be cautious and discerning. Not everything that is linked to is what we need to be reading. Have a discerning mind.
- On Facebook we have an opportunity to be an evangelist. We are an example, and everything we write or link to can be a tool used by God to draw others to Himself. We should gently and intentionally share about Christ and His gospel on our Facebook. We never know how an unbeliever's heart can be affected by us. Nowhere else do we have a captive audience like Facebook...so be an example of Christ's gospel--be an evangelist.
A question to leave you with that I will address in the next post:What could Facebook be replacing in your life?
