Reflection Options  

Journal  (Reflect on one or more of these questions)

• Journal your answers to these questions to do a self-examination. 15 Questions to help Christians Follow Jesus on Social Media (Kevin Halloran)

• If Jesus lived in today’s culture, how do you think he would have used social media, YouTube or a smartphone in his relationships with his disciples? With larger groups of people he ministered to? Have fun pondering and journal your answers.

Quote Interaction  (Agree, disagree or otherwise engage with the quote/quotes)

• Technology gives us power, but it does not and cannot tell us how to use that power. Thanks to technology, we can instantly communicate across the world, but it still doesn't help us know what to say. (Jonathan Sacks)

• Satan knows that if he can get us to laugh at things we believe we would never do, our defenses will fall. (Kent Hughes)

• Because we understand our worth as image-bearers and our identity as children of God, we will not look to the Internet to prove that we are important, valuable, and loved. And because we accept the presence of indwelling sin, we will not be blind to the potential idolatries and temptations we can succumb to online. And because we know ourselves to be fallen creatures, we will accept the limits of our human condition. We cannot have meaningful relationships with thousands of people. We cannot really know what is going on in the world. We cannot be truly here and there at the same time. The biggest deception of our digital age may be the lie that says we can be omni-competent, omni-informed, and omni-present. We cannot be any of these things. We must choose our absence, our inability, and our ignorance – and choose wisely. The sooner we embrace this finitude, the sooner we can be free.  (Kevin DeYoung)

Reading and reflection on Shaping The Journey of Emerging Adults: 

• Read “Seek God through fasting” (p. 141).  Fasting can help us not only seek God but also seek His perspective on various areas of our lives.  Consider doing a fast to help you step back and gain perspective? What kinds of media could you fast? What aspects of relating to others over electronic mediums would you want to ask the Lord about? Formulate a few questions to attend to as you fast.

• Read “Teach specific skills for healthy relating” (pp. 158-160).  How has growing up with (or for mentors, growing into) Social Media use affected your ability to relate? What skills do you need to attend to in the midst of (or as a result of) using Social Media/texting etc?