The Hidden Problem of Social Media
A few weeks ago, I decided to leave Twitter. It’s a decision I’ve wavered between for many months. While I was encouraged by much on the site, I grew tired of the fresh dose of controversies. I don’t think I’m strong for leaving, but in reality weak. Others can handle the medium and should keep doing it, in my opinion.
However, as I went back and forth between my decision I discovered a problem of social media that we don’t often talk about. I didn’t have trouble leaving Twitter because of my own addictions or a love of controversy. Instead, part of me just couldn’t bear to sever the relationships there.
This last year has brought a lot of discussion about virtual and physical community. As the pandemic forced us into Zoom meetings and on-line church it seems like the loudest voices tell us these are all cheap smokescreens for true relationships. Embodied relationships need bodies, right? Teens and adults who flock to their social media friends experience a deficient relationship. Maybe, but maybe not exactly.
A Small Update
It’s been a little while since I’ve posted on here, so this will be more of a short blog/personal update. Earlier this month I celebrated my thirty-third birthday (I think? Who can keep track anymore?!) The day ended with homemade gifts from the kids, and all of us devouring the above-pictured cake. Recipe here, and let me say, the four boxes of chocolate it required were worth it…
My Favorite Reads in 2020
As it’s nearing the end of the year, I’m going to throw my hat into the ring of end-of-year book lists (Find my 2019 post here). While last year I followed Tim Challie’s Reading Challenge, this year I decided to pick titles on my own. Last year I was really excited...
I Can’t Raise My Ebenezer
Here I raise my Ebenezer, here by thy great help I’ve come.
The words slip out through my lips as the melody runs on, but my head is not so sure. Raise my Ebenezer? Impossible.
A Pause for Prayer
I'm pausing today to pray for my brother in Christ, Tim, his wife Aileen, and their whole family. May Christ comfort and hold you and all those who are suffering. Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart...
Twitter, Some Chickens, and a Humbling Reminder
A couple of months ago, a conversation on Twitter caused me to pause and view the way that I interact with others, particularly online. As often happens on social media, I ran across a statement that was causing quite a stir, evidenced by the slew of comments and...
Wrestling with Beauty and Loss
Two weeks ago I stood in cool grass next to a three hundred foot waterfall that tumbled over rocks and streams until it reached the opening of the lake in front of me. As I stood filtering water into the bottles at my feet, I sung out hymns to the artist who had...
Waiting for Eternity
I’ve been thinking a lot about time. It’s probably hard not to nowadays. When the days slip by in the monotony of a pandemic, we have nothing else to do but carve out their worth with numbers. Five months since it started, four weeks since we went on a trip, two weeks...
My Amateur Memory Grid
This year I made the goal to memorize bigger chunks of Scripture. First I started with Psalm 16, following my usual method of repeated repetition. But after diving deeper into research about memory in the Medieval Age, I decided to try a different tactic for my next...
Is it Really True?
This past weekend two already-exhausted parents loaded up our car with camping gear, three kids, and an eighty-pound goldendoodle. Our silver Impala merged onto the interstate and left behind reality as we ventured towards the expanse of the national forest. There...