I am losing hope in social media. Quickly.
Because we all are just typing, and because those typed words seem to fly off into a meaningless outer space, it is far too easy to type things that are negative, hurtful, unprofitable, argumentative, defensive, prideful, and everything else in between.
And the thing is, I have been guilty of this. I am one of "those people" that has contributed to this pile of crap by typing negative, unprofitable, horrible sorts of things. It makes me wonder if it's even worth it.
A while back, I blogged because I thought the Lord had given me a story to share - a testimony of His faithfulness to encourage others to hope in Him more. I was also having a lot of fun designing and crafting and was so excited about it, I just wanted to share with everyone. I engaged on other social media platforms because it was fun to connect with people I would never otherwise connect with...and I truly believed these media sorts of things could be redeemed and used for the Lord's purposes.
Great intentions, folks.
But here I am. Processing what feels like a bit fat mess.
Though I started with the best of intentions, it just seems too complicated. Though I DO have a story to share, and though it IS a story of the Lord's faithfulness, I feel like I can/should only share the good parts...and that the valleys and the yucky parts are too dark, too riddled with negativity and doubt...and only sharing the good parts feels, well, fake. Though I DO have fun sharing design and crafting sorts of things, is it, in the end, just unprofitable? Meaningless? And, perhaps, even rooted in my own pride or false identity? Though it IS fun to connect with people, is it really worthwhile to "invest" in 100 relationships at the expense of 10 face-to-face, undistracted sorts of deeper, more relational interactions? Though I DO believe social media can be redeemed for the Lord's purposes, I, personally, feel too weak and too sinful to sign up for that job. I will screw it up - and HAVE screwed it up.
Sharing on social media is complicated. Even completely innocent, well-intentioned sharing can be misunderstood, or could offend. After all, you hardly ever have FULL control over who will see or read your content. How will Jane Doe in Never Never Land respond - especially when you've never really considered someone like HER will be reading your posts?
And here's another thing that's even more discouraging... Some of my favorite blog authors have been inundated with horrible, hate-filled, argumentative comments on their posts. It makes me wonder if blog readers are even interested in the heart of what's being said vs. a misuse of a word or a tiny point that could be taken out of context. Is the social media world really this dark?
Are we all looking for an argument? Looking to jockey our positions or wisdom over another's? Are we all looking to just be heard? By someone - anyone? Are we all frantically adjusting our highlight reel for others to think we're successful and worthwhile? Are we all desperately connecting with hundreds of faceless people just to feel known? Yuck.
Bah. Is it worth it? I am not sure yet.
Do I overanalyze everything? Yes. Yes, I do.
Because we all are just typing, and because those typed words seem to fly off into a meaningless outer space, it is far too easy to type things that are negative, hurtful, unprofitable, argumentative, defensive, prideful, and everything else in between.
And the thing is, I have been guilty of this. I am one of "those people" that has contributed to this pile of crap by typing negative, unprofitable, horrible sorts of things. It makes me wonder if it's even worth it.
A while back, I blogged because I thought the Lord had given me a story to share - a testimony of His faithfulness to encourage others to hope in Him more. I was also having a lot of fun designing and crafting and was so excited about it, I just wanted to share with everyone. I engaged on other social media platforms because it was fun to connect with people I would never otherwise connect with...and I truly believed these media sorts of things could be redeemed and used for the Lord's purposes.
Great intentions, folks.
But here I am. Processing what feels like a bit fat mess.
Though I started with the best of intentions, it just seems too complicated. Though I DO have a story to share, and though it IS a story of the Lord's faithfulness, I feel like I can/should only share the good parts...and that the valleys and the yucky parts are too dark, too riddled with negativity and doubt...and only sharing the good parts feels, well, fake. Though I DO have fun sharing design and crafting sorts of things, is it, in the end, just unprofitable? Meaningless? And, perhaps, even rooted in my own pride or false identity? Though it IS fun to connect with people, is it really worthwhile to "invest" in 100 relationships at the expense of 10 face-to-face, undistracted sorts of deeper, more relational interactions? Though I DO believe social media can be redeemed for the Lord's purposes, I, personally, feel too weak and too sinful to sign up for that job. I will screw it up - and HAVE screwed it up.
Sharing on social media is complicated. Even completely innocent, well-intentioned sharing can be misunderstood, or could offend. After all, you hardly ever have FULL control over who will see or read your content. How will Jane Doe in Never Never Land respond - especially when you've never really considered someone like HER will be reading your posts?
And here's another thing that's even more discouraging... Some of my favorite blog authors have been inundated with horrible, hate-filled, argumentative comments on their posts. It makes me wonder if blog readers are even interested in the heart of what's being said vs. a misuse of a word or a tiny point that could be taken out of context. Is the social media world really this dark?
Are we all looking for an argument? Looking to jockey our positions or wisdom over another's? Are we all looking to just be heard? By someone - anyone? Are we all frantically adjusting our highlight reel for others to think we're successful and worthwhile? Are we all desperately connecting with hundreds of faceless people just to feel known? Yuck.
Bah. Is it worth it? I am not sure yet.
Do I overanalyze everything? Yes. Yes, I do.
