Honor among Tweets
Twitter allows for some interesting times.
We all know the great things that Twitter and other social media outlets have given us, but there are also some challenges that they bring to the surface.
Some things were just never meant to be shared with everyone. Thoughts that we used to just think to ourselves, like how we aren’t enjoying a speakers talk at a conference or humor that people who really know us would “get” used to stay in our heads or at a minimum in our inner circle.
Boy that has changed.
In some way, Twitter has simply brought some issues in the Christian community to light that were already there – we have just turned the light on in the garage and all of our cockroaches (issues not people) are scurrying.
I wonder if it has shown us all that we value humor over honor and cynicism over optimism.
Humor over honor:
Just to be truthful, I am the chief sinner.
Last week I tweeted something I thought was funny. I even #fb it so it would go to even more followers – I was proud of my humor. Then I received the DM’s and the emails questioning some very core things about me and my theology and even letting me know where my tweet (and my humor) had not honored some friends of mine and their experiences in life. Wow. I just thought it was funny but it lacked honor.
Honor is a lost art. It’s value is pretty low in our society. But in the Christian community should there not be honor among thieves? We all once were lost on the wrong path and completely ignorant of our mistakes. We were thieves of God’s holy and righteous plan and then something weird happens. Rather than honor among thieves, we turn on each other. We rake each other over the coals in order to bring attention to ourselves and promote ourselves. We scour the web looking for anything that disagrees with our theology so we can make much of it online. But hey it’s funny, and it has a punchline that people laugh at and we get lots of @’s on the back. Honestly it breaks my heart.
Cynicism over optimism:
A part of honor is that we give the benefit of the doubt to family and we are family. But instead on August 11, 2010 Rick Warren tweets a challenge to churches that in my loose translation said, my kid (church) can whip your kid (church) in a game of kick-ball) – probably not the best challenge to share with 130,000 people, but not as one tweet said a #gospelfail – and we go C-R-A-Z-Y.
All of us thieves who just like me the week before have tweet some petty stupid stuff themselves go on the attack.
So here is what I am challenging myself with…a twitter creed of sorts to have honor among tweets. Will you join me?
A TWEETS CREED
- I will assume the best about anyone I follow on twitter. If I don’t assume the best about them I will not follow them and I will not comment on them.
- I will always choose honor over humor. Is there anyone my humor could dis-honor? If so I will not tweet.
- Sometimes truth needs to be said. If it’s about a fellow brother or sister in Christ I will contact them first to make sure we really disagree and discuss the best way I could communicate my point of view.
Agree. Well put Shawn.
Thanks, Shawn – I don’t think this is a Twitter thing. It’s an anywhere anytime thing for the most part – it’s for sharing prayer requests in small group and for accountability partners over coffee. And it maybe kills Wednesday night prayer meetings.
I am in. x2
Being online indeed gives us a boldness that we wouldn’t have normally and that can cause us to say things we wouldn’t say normally (or shouldn’t at least).
I admit, I can be too much of a cynic at times. I’m working on it. Trying to be louder about what I’m for than against.
But…
We shouldn’t act like the people on the Emperors New Clothes either.
I can’t agree that we should put everyone in the popemobile and protect them from any comments that aren’t sunshine.
I find myself in J. Lee Grady’s camp from a post over at MMI. We’ve allowed these leaders to be untouchable and it hasn’t produced good things.
Rick Warren, from your example, is a church leader….a major church leader…does that mean we don’t question him or his comments? Dangerous ground. As Rick tweets “BIBLICAL leaders use themselves as examples…” His position, and those in similar positions, gives him a loud voice, but also a big responsibility in how he uses that voice.
Again I admit that I can be too much of a cynic at times and I continue to work on it. But there are other times that it’s not cynicism, it’s discernment. Just because we’re christians, even famous rock start christians, doesn’t mean we’re beyond reproach. But there is a healthy way, a way that reflects Christ, to do that. We need to be honest and real, but not forget about grace.
A lesson from this: as leaders we need to add the words “oops” and “i’m sorry” to our vocabulary. That’s all it would’ve taken to cool this particular example down.
The new voice that social media has given us is a powerful tool. It can also be a hurtful tool. It can also be a tool that holds us to a higher standard…and I think that’s uncomfortable, but healthy.