"Social Media and VIRAL FAITH"

There is no getting away from it! The "old school" ways of communication have been dumped in favor of the social media networks that dominate our society.  Our young people communicate very differently than we did "back in the day."  Information is readily accessible; perhaps, "TOO MUCH" information in many instances.

This proliferation and inundation of information has created a title wave of controversy in our society and the Institutional Church (IC) has not escaped its wrath either. From the messages that we send to one another to the thoughts, ideals and opinions of the Pastor to the jealous hospitality worker, we will probably NEVER have to wonder again what somebody else is thinking!

We have cultivated a new age of selfishness and entitlement that is inescapable.  Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Linkedin and the rest have created an insatiable appetite for the lastest thing and the hottest gossip. Once the information is released in cyberspace, it cannot be rescinded.  The many mistakes made by illicit videos, photos, letters, emails and texts have precipitated a new era of rage, hate and misinformation. But what about the IC? Where does it stand on this subject and why is it even an issue?

Whether we like it or not, the IC is still the most powerful influence of its people. The Pastor is  the "mack daddy" of the "information highway", his congregation and its moral or immoral compass as the case may be. So "viral faith" is the "new normal" in the IC. Why does the IC needs to actively engage people face to face when they can type a few words, send a text and present that message to the world?

We have to ask the hard question.  Who is the text intended for?  What is the objective of the TWEET? How many "friends" do you really need on Facebook?  How do we interpret the effectiveness of the number of "hits" or "likes" or "follows" we get?  Am I following you because you are following me or do I really believe in your message or the message of your ministry?

Raging debates over explicit posts, personal business that is posted with the expectation of empathy and the person posting the comment gets offended when they don't receive the desired results, the person who posts 78 scriptures each day needs to be stopped by any means necessary (there REALLY needs to be a LIMIT), and the "jokers" forwarding "chain letters" for blessings needs to be horsewhipped! We have to be able to separate what's real from what's foolishness!

There are equally compelling arguments on both sides as to the merits or detriment of social media and it affect on the IC. Can a Pastor with a "following" of only 25 people seriously be compared to a TD Jakes or Joel Osteen who have thousands of "followers" on Twitter and Facebook? What I am challenging the reader of this blog to do is to focus on the "content" and "intent" of the message from the ministry and not the celebrity status of the church or its leadership. Social media can be a very effective or destructive tool depending upon the spiritual depth of the end user.

All people learn differently, but one thing is immutable (unchangeable) and that is,

"Faith cometh by hearing; not by tweeting!"