[307 words]
Ninety-percent of all people deal with some level of stage fright. How do you feel when all eyes are on you? Do your palms get cold and clammy? Do you become nervous and anxious? Do you blush, tremble, shake, or feel nauseated?
There is at least one stage where the vast majority of people feel no fright at all. This stage is Facebook. Facebook recently exceeded 900 million active users. Potentially, then, depending on your privacy setting, up to 900 million people are watching what you say and do. Many who would be very careful in front of a crowd may post on Facebook with reckless abandon.
God has called His people to be different (1 Corinthians 6:9-11; 2 Timothy 2:21). God has called us to be a light in the darkness (Matthew 5:14-16). The question for us is, do our Facebook, Twitter, Linkedln, and Pinterest accounts reflect this? Here are several categories to consider:
What Do We Say and Post? Could someone look at our profiles and see bad language, gossip, slander, or crude and crass speech? (2 Corinthians 12:20; James 3).
What People and Activities Do We “Like” (Support)? Do we “Like” celebrities, athletes, artists, or others with trashy reputations? Do we support movies, music, TV shows, video games, or other things that are not Christ like? (Romans 12:2).
What Pictures Are on Our Profiles? Do any pictures show us engaging in sin or less than Godly behaviors? (Romans 13:13-14). Do any show us hanging with people or in places a Christians should not be? (1 Corinthians 15:33). Do any pictures on our profiles display immodesty or promote lust? (1 Timothy 2:9-10; Romans 13:13; Matthew 5:28).
Remember, 900 million people are watching on earth, and One is watching in heaven.
Brett Petrillo
via Huntington Park church of Christ
Shreveport, LA