Kirk Cameron’s latest film, Connect, is about the world your teenagers inhabit. You see your children in the physical world of school, soccer practices, church, meals, homework and the daily rush of life. But, at the same time, you know that your kids are connected to somewhere else, to a world of thoughts and attractions you cannot reach. The reality hits: “my kids are connected, but not to God and not to me!” Connect meets this reality head on. Kirk and his wife Chelsea have 6 teenagers. He knows first-hand the powerful connection of the dark virtual world. So Kirk wanted to know why the virtual, online world has such power over our teenagers. Most importantly Kirk wanted to know […]
Social Media
It is easy to get drawn into the negative side of social media. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Here are some positive guidelines to avoid the negatives and thus benefit from your use of social media. Social media is like the rest of life, exercising wisdom is always essential. When you post: use good judgment, use biblical restraint, do avoid gossip, do speak only what is good and building, do show genuine care for others, remember many people you don’t know may read your words, and do have courage to speak truth. When you view or respond to posts: be patient, show love not irritation, show kindness, don’t bully or mock, determine not to be judgmental, and […]
One of your friends just posted a less than complimentary comment about a politician. You reply back with a similar comment. This touches off a mini-flurry of comments and links that are all centered on the stupidity of anyone even thinking that there may be something good about this person. You sign off with a few emojis thinking it was a good exchange. Is there a problem here? Actually, there is. The problem comes when interactions on social media are viewed as private exchanges between you and the people you are responding to. But that definitely is not the case. For example, say there were 5 people that participated in the news feed exchange mentioned above. This means that potentially […]
Most would agree that social media and the internet are places where dangers lurk. So it might be tempting to say the solution is to avoid cyber-space altogether. But that would be unwise. Consider this. Driving a vehicle is also fraught with dangers. There are unsafe drivers in abundance. Driving to places of temptation is always an option. One’s self-image and self-worth can easily attached to the type of vehicle driven. Lack of attention can cause loss of property, injury and even death! The unexpected is always around the next turn. And of course, a parent’s nightmare, the car is an opportunity for sexual immorality. Even with all of these negative possibilities we still encourage our children to drive. Why, […]
The question we posed in the last post was this: If it was possible to remove all of social media would your children be better off? The answer: not really. Social media isn’t the problem. The heart is. The world, the flesh and the Devil will bring negative influences even if social media is not available. Here is what I Corinthians 10:31 and Colossians 3:17 teach: If something cannot be done to add to God’s reputation, that is the glory of God, with gratitude to God, in the name of Christ, it should not be done! How is this a realistic, practical objective? We learn from Psalm 139 that it is not possible to exclude God from any portion of […]