More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
there’s a disconnect between how we write our posts and how we read other people’s posts.
Why are you using social media?
Humans are created for communion with God and with one another. It’s not good for humans to be alone—not good because in our aloneness we don’t image a profoundly social God as we’re designed to do.
Yet, the draw to surpass their God-given limits overcame the desire to bear his image as they were made to do.
There’s a way to use social media that reflects God. And there’s a way to use it that rivals him.
It’s our ability to be influenced that allows us to be conformed to the image of Christ.
We dare not tell ourselves that we are unaffected by what we fix our eyes on.
For time-bound humans, all time spent on social media is time that will not be spent elsewhere.
consider the relational significance of God’s omnipresence. He’s able to create and sustain an unlimited number of personal relationships with others.
First, we need to recognize that what we see, read, and hear on social media has a direct influence on our emotions, both positive and negative.
media you take in—through both visual and auditory senses— sticks with you after you close out the app.
other words, this study revealed that the more time we spend on our phones, the less time we spend doing other life-giving activities, therefore, the less happiness we experience in daily life.
Ultimately, our relationship with social media, whether toxic or healthy, is dependent on the state of our hearts, the priorities of our souls, and what we love and value.
Knowing what God’s Word has to say about our hearts, minds, and emotions prepares us to use ...
This highlight has been truncated due to consecutive passage length restrictions.
The more we’re aware of the powerful effect social media can have on our emotions and, hence, our lives, the more we can respond to our emotions with the unchanging truths of God’s Word.
But processing our emotions is not the same as letting them lead us.
When envy overcomes us as we see that someone has what we desire, we remember: we have all we need in Christ
Dig a little to find out where those feelings are coming from. Share them with the Lord. And then preach the gospel to your heart.
So basically—and here’s the painful truth—all of us are simple and lack sense. The voice we choose to listen to is the difference between life and death.
Before we mindlessly pull out our phones and begin to scroll, it’s important to ask: What’s the best use of my time in this moment?
So often, we feel we’re too busy.
Yet, somehow, we find hours to scroll on our phones.
what we spend our time looking at greatly affects what we’re thinking about.
Questioning God’s goodness is the first step on the path of disobedience that ultimately ends in folly.
Our greatest problem isn’t spending too much time on social media. Our greatest problem is that we’re not spending enough time in our Bibles.
We need to add more of what’s truly good into our daily routines instead of only subtracting what’s potentially harmful.
Prayerfully ask him to grant you wisdom on social media—in who you follow, what you post, and how much time you spend there.
She rejected her allegiance to God as her primary influence in favor of something she thought would bring her more happiness, success, and power.
We get confused about our own giftings and offerings, trying to muscle them to match the ones we see online. We distrust God’s plan for our lives, seeking other options and paths.
The question to ask is, What—or who—is your primary influence?
we don’t often consider using the word “influencer” when it comes to Jesus.
as we fix our eyes on Christ, peripheral influences will hold less power.
this person influencing me toward what is true, good, and beautiful? Do they help me to savor and be satisfied in Christ?
Pay close attention to how your feed is leading you. Make edits on the fly to whom you follow or mute, but also take time periodically to deliberately sort through your follow and friend lists.
Holiness isn’t marked by the number of times you quoted Scripture on your pages. It’s inward.
Instead, we use social media best when we invite others into the communion we already have with God.
Social media is never “just there.” It’s designed to make you behave in certain ways. Ways that are not necessarily aligned to “whatever is pure, whatever is lovely” (Phil. 4:8).
Social media is designed to make us feel like we can’t be away from it.
Social media, though, is something we usually pick up without any thought of how or why we’re going to use it.
Remember: eliminating what makes us stumble—although necessary—is not enough. We need to fill ourselves up with the things that make us flourish. We can’t settle for eliminating the bad; we need to surround ourselves with the good.
In one study on multitasking and mind wandering, they learned that women whose minds weren’t focused on the people or tasks at hand had shorter telomeres, putting them at a higher risk for premature aging and disease.
The corresponding conclusion, based on other studies, showed that people who focused on one thing at a time (unitasking) had longer telomeres and reported higher levels of happiness and satisfaction with life.
Apparently, distraction-induced scrolling can affect us at ...
This highlight has been truncated due to consecutive passage length restrictions.
If you’re continually fighting envy, boasting, slander, pride, gossip, resentment, or quarreling—if social media pulls you under the current of culture—then it might be time to take an extended break or call it quits.
God can “like” what you’re doing even if you never get any likes.
Nothing wipes me out like comparison! But when I’m aware of how God has gifted me uniquely, I discover freedom in creativity. Remember that you’re only called to be the unique person God has made you to be.
The danger of building our platforms, growing our audiences, and reaching more people is that we’re naturally prone to worshipping ourselves.
Our hearts are idol factories that look for any opportunity to exalt fame, fortune, self-image, success, or influence to the throne of our hearts.
also don’t confuse intimacy with hospitality. Being intimate means sharing something personal, maybe even embarrassing. Our culture currently celebrates this type of sharing as being “real” or “authentic,” but, sisters, intimate sharing is meant for those you trust.
Hospitality keeps the focus on the shared experience rather than the intimate details. Hospitality offers your “audience” a place to connect, not a place to be voyeuristic.
