Lies to Reject

Follow your heart. Be true to yourself. Believe in yourself. Live your truth. All that matters is that you are happy. Manifest that. We have all heard at least one of these mantras. If you have social media especially, you have seen one of these posted. Our society speaks these phrases daily. I have seen them on Instagram, seen them in cute script as a tattoo, heard them in casual conversations, and had them quoted by different trainers I exercise with online. They are lies. While they have a nice ring and look pretty when we write them in an aesthetically pleasing font for a post, they are lies. They are not biblical or words Jesus spoke.

[Our] Social Dilemma: A Response To The Netflix Documentary

“Let’s get off social media for Lent this year,” she said. That was how it started. We were juniors in college when my roommate suggested we fast from using social media platforms for the forty days of Lent. We chose social media for a number of reasons: to refocus our attention on God, take a mental break, and witness what would happen to us without it.

LifestyleClaire ZassoNovember 6, 2020social dilemma, social mediaComment

When to Share in a World that Shares Everything

We live in the age of social media, where we can share anything we’re doing at any moment. And let’s be real, most of us can’t go on a trip, visit a store, or eat a meal without broadcasting it to the masses. Listen, I’m as guilty of it as you are. But sharing everything with everyone isn’t healthy.

LifestyleAbigail WalkerMarch 9, 2020social media, prayer, fasting, discipline, secrecyComment

What I Learned About a Distraction-Free Life From a Stranger at a Cafe

He sat at a family-sized table alone, pouring all of his attention into the study Bible opened before him. I imagined that the baked potato sitting at his side grew colder by the second and wondered if it felt neglected by his lack of interest in it. I sat enjoying my own meal and as I watched his fixed attention on the wrinkled pages before him, my curiosity only grew. The questions became a pile in my head and before I knew it my two legs were bee-lining me to the lonely man. It was only as I stood before him that I realized I had no plan.

A Noble CharacterAbbie NorrisDecember 17, 2019distractions, social media, faith, spiritual growthComment

Our Faith Is The Ultimate Influencer

Social media and one’s online presence has become a milestone or achievement for so many people that we have even coined a term for it: influencer. Influencers are found on many social media platforms, where they are praised for their ability to create content with cohesive feeds, have thousands of followers, and influence people on all kinds of decisions, like things to buy or places to shop.

CommunityGiana VasconcellosJuly 22, 2019social media, influencers, God's voiceComment

Turning From Technology To A Life-Giving God

Over the past few years, I have come to learn more about God and also myself. I have learned that I feel the most alive when I am outside and feel the most connected to God when I listen to worship music. I hear God’s voice and am reminded of how He feels about me when I read my Bible. Through my experiences, I feel like God speaks to me most predominantly through interactions with others or through my circumstances. I use this information about myself in order to have a deeper relationship with Christ–not to limit how God can work in my life. God has created each of us differently and, as a result, we connect with Him–just like with others–in various ways.

LifestyleMoriah SpencerJune 11, 2019technology, social media, rest, spiritual giftsComment

Are You A Slave To Your Online Gurus?

Another morning, another filled inbox. Some of the emails are spam, some are reminding me about upcoming bills or purchases that are being shipped, others are from my gurus. My gurus are the people who flood my inbox when they launch a new podcast, blog, or post something especially engaging on Instagram. I tend to never click on these types of emails, but I find myself not deleting them either.

CommunityRachel WatsonMay 29, 2019social media, online, Instagram, podcasts, influencersComment

Overcoming Earthly Distractions That Hold Us In Bondage

Distraction is a word that gets thrown a lot in our culture. We are told we are distracted by our phones, we are distracted by the media, we are distracted by advertisements. But, what are we being distracted from?

LifestyleMia GraceMarch 26, 2019distractions, addiction, bondage, television, social media, FOMOComment

What Instagram Ads Taught Me About Growing an Online Ministry

There is this tension of wanting to point more people to Jesus by providing content people will visually enjoy but also wanting them to not see you (or a pretty filtered version of you and your life), but to see the One whom you preach and serve. To be a transparent being who is the hands and feet and the voice of the Savior, without becoming a savior for the hungry, hurting souls searching for meaning, healing and nourishment.

Lifestyle, Justice and MissionsGuest UserMarch 19, 2019missions, ministry, pride, social mediaComment