The ease of blogging, Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms tempt people to express thoughts and opinions instantly, always with the hope that something we tap out on our keyboards will go viral. We all dream of influencing people. And, for Christians, that dream can have a certain degree of nobility to it.

Alas, even as Christians, we see pride well up as we gain followers. If our followers like our posts, that pride convinces us that we can recklessly post anything without regard to the feelings of others. As a result, all too often we say things online without thinking through the ramifications. Then, when we get pushback,  we whimper like wounded puppies,  complaining that we’ve been misunderstood and mistreated.

Please don’t read this article and think that I mean Christians should play nice and never say anything controversial. Sisters, the Gospel, by its very nature, offends the world. Jesus promised that faithfulness to Him would draw animosity from His opponents (John 15:18-25). Indeed,  the very thesis of The Outspoken TULIP is that we must proclaim the Gospel boldly, knowing full well that doing so invites persecution.

At the same time, we have no business deliberately stirring up controversy unnecessarily. Scripture condemns argumentative attitudes about matters that don’t further the Gospel.

²³ Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. ²⁴ And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, ²⁵ correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, ²⁶ and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will. ~~2 Timothy 2:23-26 (ESV)

At lunch today, John and I thought about some experiences I had over 20 years ago. Current events bring back these memories, giving me a perspective that seldom gets considered in the public debate. My flesh screams at me to write a blog post about it.

Although I could rationalize that writing such an article would present a point of view that most people haven’t really seen, I agree with my husband that right now writing about it would only alienate the very people I’d want to influence. Perhaps in time, I will find appropriate circumstances for making such a post. At the moment, however, I believe doing so would distract from the Gospel.

Social media has blessed me with wonderful opportunity to tell people about the Lord Jesus Christ. Face-to-face evangelism is difficult for me due to my speech defect and other complications of my disability,  so I’m grateful for the opportunities that the Internet provides. Therefore, I want to use social media responsibly. Instead of firing off inflammatory posts simply for the sake of making my opinions known, I want to honor Christ.

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