As young people, we are fed a steady diet of meism. The term selfie has become a pop term for the teen adoration of itself. We speak well and listen poorly, forming our next thoughts while someone else is speaking. How many mirrors do we have in our home? Our lockers? Our vehicles? And with this extravagance of self comes a fixation away from what we should be focused upon. Others. I believe the major cause of this in the teen world is social media and faux relationships.
Of course, the two greatest commandments that Christ laid out for us are the love of God and the love of others. All too often, we have not made either one of these things our concern. We have made the love of self our greatest concern. Solomon said that if we turn our ears from the cry of the poor man's child that we would cry ourselves and not be heard.
As teens, we have made social media our first love. We easily escape reality and are addicted to the screen in front of our face. But, we are not as comfortable or interested with the person in front of us. Soul media ought to be more important to us. The most important connectivity that we should be concerned about is to others in need and not the internet. Here's a test:
This Teen Decade we are in (2013-2019) must see a fundamental change in how we relate to each other. Why? We have raised a generation of teens who think that connectivity is actually the internet and not relationship. We have raised a generation of teens who think that cyber-relationships are more convenient than face to face relationships are important. When did that happen? The Lost accountability and honesty of real relationships has created young people who live in a faux world of self - deception. Once you sit them down, you will realize that some of your best conversations will come with teens. You just gotta get the phone out of their hand or pull them away from their laptop.
Here are 4 ways to improve our connectivity:
1. Use the social media that we are plugged into on even hours only
2. Set aside social media one day a week
3. Do not use social media when speaking with another person face to face (if we shouldn't text and drive then don't text and talk)
4. Place your phone on silent all the time
5. Ask a teen once a week to talk with you face to face
It is time we start to value analog time more than we do digital time! Analog is human. Real talk. Digital is electronic. Faux talk. Value others more than ourselves in every way. Beginning with our time. And ending with our relationships.
As teens, we have made social media our first love. We easily escape reality and are addicted to the screen in front of our face. But, we are not as comfortable or interested with the person in front of us. Soul media ought to be more important to us. The most important connectivity that we should be concerned about is to others in need and not the internet. Here's a test:
-WHEN IS THE LAST TIME WE WENT OUT OF OUR WAY TO HELP SOMEONE?
-DO YOU TAKE MORE THAN YOU GIVE?
-DURING AN OFFERING, DO YOU GRAB THE $1 BILL INSTEAD OF THE $20
-HAVE YOU CRIED FOR SOMEONE ELSE IN THE PAST YEAR?
-YOU MAKE MORE EXCUSES TO MINISTER TO OTHERS THAN YOU DO CHOICES TO MINISTER TO THEM
This Teen Decade we are in (2013-2019) must see a fundamental change in how we relate to each other. Why? We have raised a generation of teens who think that connectivity is actually the internet and not relationship. We have raised a generation of teens who think that cyber-relationships are more convenient than face to face relationships are important. When did that happen? The Lost accountability and honesty of real relationships has created young people who live in a faux world of self - deception. Once you sit them down, you will realize that some of your best conversations will come with teens. You just gotta get the phone out of their hand or pull them away from their laptop.
Here are 4 ways to improve our connectivity:
1. Use the social media that we are plugged into on even hours only
2. Set aside social media one day a week
3. Do not use social media when speaking with another person face to face (if we shouldn't text and drive then don't text and talk)
4. Place your phone on silent all the time
5. Ask a teen once a week to talk with you face to face
It is time we start to value analog time more than we do digital time! Analog is human. Real talk. Digital is electronic. Faux talk. Value others more than ourselves in every way. Beginning with our time. And ending with our relationships.
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