Good Thoughts

Thanks for the comments in my "What Are You Thinking" post. I think Scott has a valid point about what things like Facebook do. The internet has brought us all closer to one another by allowing us to "put it all out there." And hopefully this deters us from saying and doing things that we normally may do. Society obviously does encourage us to do and say things that are acceptable in this world, but not in the eyes of God. This is very clear if you watch MTV for more than 5 minutes. So I guess it really just comes down to what you want others to think about you.

For those of you in our youth group, you know how much I harp on being the same person at church, as you are at school, as you are at home, as you are at work. I guess that's what that post came out of...frustration for seeing one thing and then reading another.

I hope that the post did not come across as condemning (however after reading it again, it kind of does). I just want you all to think about what it is that you are putting out for everyone to see. And think about this...what if a non-Christian takes a look at your Facebook and then notices that you are a member of the UMYF network? How does that look to them? Hopefully your facebook is consistent with the views of UMYF.

What Are You Thinking?

Ok, I'm going to begin this post by saying that I have done some dumb things in my lifetime. I've done things that I'm not proud of. I think we can all say that to some extent. But what I can't understand is why individuals do something dumb and then proceed to brag about it....on the internet.

I recently subscribed to Facebook, one of the largest networking tools on the internet. It allows you to have friends, communicate with your friends, learn about others like yourself, and basically do whatever you want. I made a trip around to "my friends" facebooks tonight and discovered some language and actions that were (1) inappropriate and (2) something that should never be published on the internet.

Usually when I do something that I'm not proud of, I keep it to myself or talk with somebody I'm close to (for example my accountability group) and ask for help and prayer. The very last thing I would do is post it on some network and let others see it. So I guess my conclusion is that these things are not regretted by the one who has put it all out there for others to see. And if that is the case...I am greatly disppointed and sadened. Mostly because the person that I know, is nowhere near to the person who is portrayed on the web.