Social Media and Our Identity!
If you Google or Pinterest the idea of an addiction to social media, you will find many search results. There is no secret that today’s world is centered on watching other people’s lives and sharing our own. We have so many platforms. I don’t have to name them because the chances of you reading this blog from one of them is highly likely.
I am certainly not disapproving of social media, but we can’t deny the fact that the lives of other people are our entertainment. Social media platforms have recognized this also, we are faced with ads from companies all over the internet. It really is amazing to take a step back and realize how obsessed we are with ourselves.
Should we be surprised?
I find myself thinking about how crazy it is, but then I think, “We have always been obsessed with ourselves.” It’s called pride and it caused the fall of our enemy, Satan.
Social Media is Not Sinful
Listen to me! I am not against social media. I am actually active on almost all of the platforms. However, the Lord has brought to my attention a possible hidden cause of our love for likes, comments, and follows. Again, I am not against this. I am on Facebook groups and we support each other by doing these very things.
Like everything else on this earth, anything can become harmful to our spirits as believers. I mean, look at food! Food is a blessing and a necessity, but it can become and idol. It is the same with jobs and even ministry.
The Concern
So, my concern is not that we enjoy connecting with each other over media. It’s not even about supporting others by follows, likes, comments, etc. It is that I hope we do this for the glory of God. Not for the glory of self.
God's Glory
I love a quote that I heard from a women speaker named Christine Caine. I shared it on social media ironically, after the Lord had totally convicted me of it. She says in my paraphrase- because I can’t exactly remember word for word - "We should be more concerned with being like-Christ than how many likes we get on social media. We should be more concerned with how many people are not following Christ than how many are following us." That convicted me, as I had just looked at my Instagram to view my latest picture!
When I thought about this subject, it stopped there. However, the Lord placed on my heart the word Identity. Do you want to know why? Because it’s something I personally struggle with. In another post I’ve written, you will learn that I was abused. So my identity since childhood was, for lack of better words, “pretty messed up.”
Motives
God showed me that my want of likes, comments, and follows were partially pleasing to Him. The more people interact with my posts, makes me aware that they are encouraged by what was posted. It allows me the opportunity to praise God for His glory being shared.
However, the other part was connected to my worth. A question I asked myself was, “If I am not getting likes, then are my thoughts or pictures important? Does it mean I am less than the next person on my feed that received more? Should I try to please others by changing what I post?"
Come on now! This is a real blog. We will keep it honest over here! I know you have been tempted by similar thoughts!
Who Am I?
As I sat down to read, by the prompting of the Holy Spirit, I felt led to look up what God thought of me…and you. I found we are seated with Christ in the heavenly places. Our focus should then be on heavenly things, instead of ourselves. We are children of God! That should be the way we view ourselves. We have been made one with Christ, (1 Corinthian 6:17) and members of His Body. We are no longer slaves. God has set us apart for Himself. We were formed by Him, and are known by Him personally (Jeremiah 1:5). We are royal, holy, and special to God. Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit.
Identity in Christ
These truths should be what we identify with. If we don’t look as glamours or if our angle was slightly off when taking a picture, and if we stop getting subscribers to our blogs (for all my bloggers out there), it should not define us.
It doesn’t have anything to do with your worth. God has given you an identity. The question you have to ask yourself is, “Is this enough for me? Do I need the approval of others, even though I know what God says about me?” Be real and examine your heart.
I asked myself this question and if I can be honest, though the answer was that God was enough for me, there was a slight want of approval that I couldn’t deny. I know why that is and can capture those feeling and thoughts with the Word of God. Those feelings can still be there, but I don’t have to obey them.
What About You?
If your answer is similar to mine (a mix of the two), you must determine for yourself the root of that need of approval from others. Identify it and then arrest it with the Word of God. Don’t beat yourself up, you are human and there is grace for that.
It is not the want of likes and such that is bad. Pictures of cute outfits are not bad, neither is asking for likes, but we can't attach our identity to them. That is where we get in trouble. So I encourage you to guard your heart... and take a cute picture if you want!
My prayer is that subscribing and commenting will be for our edification and the glory of our Father.
Blessings!