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Just More Bad News…

/ pastorlynnmalone / Leave a comment

Did the title get your attention? Well, that’s exactly what I wanted it to do. You probably clicked on the link because you thought, “Oh! Let me see what the bad news is!”

Well, the bad news is that your/our social media is leading us to more and more bad news. It really doesn’t matter the platform, either. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter)–the algorithms are all pointing us to bad news. And, we keep clicking and keep scrolling. We get caught in a “doom loop,” and that makes the situation worse.

Positively Negative

The reality is we like bad news. Many years ago, I had a radio executive in one of the congregations I served. I dabbled in radio as a younger guy, so I thought “Maybe it’s time to get back into radio.” I had a conversation with the executive to pitch my idea for a local radio talk show. After a couple of back and forth conversations discussing the idea he eventually said, “Lynn, to be successful in talk radio, you have to be negative. I don’t think you really want to be negative.” That same attention-grabbing negativity that drives talk radio also drives our social media algorithms.

No, I didn’t want to be negative then, and I don’t want to be negative now, but heaven help me, I find myself being more and more negative in my online engagement, and that’s leading me to be more negative in my face-to-face engagements. I don’t like the person I’m becoming as a result of all the “bad news” in my life. It’s messing with my sanctification!

It would be real easy to say, “It’s not my fault!” That’s the easy out. I could blame it on “algorithmic negativity bias” (it’s a real thing–look it up). Look, social media is designed to keep us scrolling. The algorithm learns which posts get our attention–that make us stop, linger or click. Unfortunately, bad news gets our attention more than good news. If we stop and linger on a “bad news” headline, we get more bad news headlines in our feed.

We humans have a survival mode bred into us that means our brains are wired to pay more attention to threats and danger (think “fight or flight” here). So, when we see a negative headline, we naturally pause.

Traditional media understood this long before the brainiacs developed algorithms for social media. Traditional media was driven by two statements: “If it bleeds, it leads,” and “Sex sells!” Social media has simply perfected these mentalities, and we’ve (meaning “me”) fallen for it in a big way.

What really makes me stop on the bad news headline? It’s just my old sinful nature at work, and the Enemy is utilizing social media to draw me away from the holiness to which Christ calls me. Let me say it this way, “Sin has a hold of me and it won’t let go, and now social media is helping it keep its hold.”

Turning Off the Doom Loop

So, the Holy Spirit and I have a little work to do. Yeah, I know the simple answer is to get off social media, but I ask, “This day and age is getting off social media a realistic possibility?” Social media is simply a tool. It is amoral. It is what we do with it that determines its morality.

The first thing I must do to turn off the doom loop is repent. All significant spiritual change begins with repentance. I repent of my own negativity and I’m sorry for all the negative posts I’ve made on social media (and there have been a few more than I care to admit). My prayer is “Change my heart, O God!”

The Lord really does want to change my heart, and as much as I would like a supernatural transformation, He’s asking me to do a little of the work myself. What is He asking me to do?

One, He’s telling me to limit my time on social media. Set a timer if I need to in order to remind myself how long I’ve been online. I need to spend less time online and more time “touching grass,” as they say–more time in face-to-face interactions. It’s a whole lot easier to say mean things online than it is in person.

Two, I need to actively engage with positive content online in order to reprogram the algorithm. That means I have to mute or block or snooze the negativity in my social media feed. When I find positive content I need to share it with others. Simply don’t click on negative headlines. Stop falling into the trap.

Three, I need to get back into God’s Word. I need to spend more time reading and reflecting on God’s Word than scrolling negative headlines on social media.

Yeah, I’ve got a lot of work to do, but with the Holy Spirit’s help, perhaps I’ll come out on the other side a better person. Perhaps the holiness I desire will make its way out in the interactions I have online and in person. That’s my prayer, anyway…

Because I’m just tired of all the bad news…

Until next time, keep looking up…

Perhaps the Problem is Us…

/ pastorlynnmalone / 2 Comments

Sometimes, I struggle on these Sunday mornings to find something to write. Other times, I have too much that I want to write and have a hard time knowing what to cull. Today is one of the latter times.

There is an abundance of subjects that I have decided opinions on, but I know I can’t write something on all of them. Based on the stats of these blogs, I can discern that most people want short, quick reads. Sorry. Today probably won’t accommodate you. You are forewarned!

Facebook Jail

I’ll begin by saying that Facebook let my wife out of Facebook jail, so I’ll probably remain on the platform. For those of you who may not know, Facebook put my pretty wife in Facebook jail for a second time.

Seriously, she only posts Bible verses, pics of grandchildren and household projects, but some of the Facebook arbiters found them to be against community standards, so they suspended her. After an appeal, she was reinstated. Guess I’ll stay on a while longer.

That’s probably a good thing. Most folks find the blog through Facebook, although a good number do get email alerts when I publish. I suppose I should try to build my subscriber base by encouraging folks to sign up with email, but I’m not trying to “monetize” the blog so it doesn’t much matter.

However, should you want to receive a notification when I publish, you can like and subscribe below and you’ll be able to find me apart from Facebook.

Now, on to other things on my mind…

Politics is Life

Politics is “top of mind” (as the en vogue saying goes) for almost everyone these days, and so it is for me. This year’s election is seventy-one days away and there is both anticipation and anxiety as that day approaches. We go to the polls seeking to change the direction of the nation, or to stay the course because the circumstances of the nation are such that the majority is pleased with the direction the leadership has set.

This year, we will not “stay the course” necessarily, for we will elect a new president. Some people believe electing one particular candidate will, in essence, be staying the course, though that candidate is doing much to draw distinctions between herself and her predecessor. Others believe electing the other candidate will lead the nation in a new, more prosperous direction.

I’m a bit of a political junkie myself. I don’t try to hide that fact. I don’t (well, not often anyways) make my political views known. You won’t see me (often) posting political articles on social media, promoting particular candidates or particular parties. We’re all in this together and part of our problem is not being able, or willing, to put aside our differences in order to overcome the divisiveness our system finds itself in.

This election cycle is an historic time for our nation. As in the election cycle of 2008 when we elected our nation’s first African-American president, we may this cycle, elect our nation’s first female president. Some say, “It’s been a long time coming,” while others say, “This is not the woman we need to elect.”

The anxiety of the moment is heightened by the cultural circumstances we are experiencing as a nation. Consider these circumstances—a stock market, that while reaching new heights, its volatility is shown by the constant swings from one day to the next, a world economy that still languishes mostly in recession, job market volatility and when we factor in the shifts in cultural values over the past few years, there’s no wonder anxiety is up.

My generation is concerned whether Social Security will be around for our retirement. Healthcare costs, in spite of an overhaul of the system, continue to rise. We have 35 trillion dollars of debt as of this past Friday morning. The Middle East is on fire, there is a war in Ukraine and China is threatening Taiwan. Do we believe a new president will change any of these circumstances?

Perhaps that’s not the appropriate question. Perhaps the appropriate question is “Whom or what do we trust?” Is our trust in a political party? Is our trust in a candidate for president or the government? I am reminded of the words of King David (that’s right KING David) writing in Psalm 20:7—

Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
    but we trust in the name of the Lord our God (Ps. 20:7 NIV).

As those who are called to follow Jesus Christ, our hope is in Him and in Him alone. We are citizens of the United States, but we are disciples of Jesus Christ, and if our hope is in the government or a political candidate, it is a misdirected hope.

A Biblical Example

When the nation of Israel left Egyptian bondage and became a nation, Moses and then Joshua was their national leader. They weren’t elected, but rather chosen by God for leadership of the nation. Afterward, God led with a group of judges over the people. There were twelve tribes with different leaders yet they were not united. They had problems working together.

The leadership they did have was corrupt and made poor choices, so the people demanded that God give them a new leader. They wanted a king like all the other nations around them. When things were not going well, the people thought what they needed most was a change in leadership, a new administration, a new structure of government. The people thought: 

“If we just get this new leader everything will be okay. He’ll solve all of our problems. He will protect us from our enemies, he will bring a sense of unity among our divided people (bipartisanship?), he will stabilize our economy, he will provide a new direction, he will provide the change we need.”

Sound familiar? Certainly! Every presidential candidate promises it.

God had a response to the nation in those days. Listen to what God told the prophet Samuel, who was the judge of the nation at the time:

7 And the Lord told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king.8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you.9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights. (1 Samuel 8: 7 – 9 NLT)

God said the reason people put their hope in new leadership to solve their problems is because they rejected God as their leader. They no longer looked to God as their hope. Sounds a lot like us…

I feel relatively certain Kamala Harris or Donald Trump, believe they will do their best to lead our nation through these challenging times. But, both candidates are human beings and that means they’re flawed…just like the rest of us. God told Samuel to make sure the people knew any leader they chose would have flaws. Did they ever!

The Problem as I See It

The problem wasn’t with the leaders. The problem was with the people. As we survey the landscape of our nation, the problem is not the economy or the culture. The problem is not with terrorism or health care, with crime or poverty. The problem is sin.

We can’t lay the problem at the door of the White House, or the state house. We can’t lay the problem at the door of the courthouse or the school house. We must lay the problem at the door of the church house, and at the door of our house. Simply put, the government can’t fix that problem.

Sin works itself out in many ways. Pride comes to mind. The government can’t fix pride.

Self-centeredness comes to mind. The government can’t fix self-centeredness. Almost no one votes against self-interest. We elect representatives to represent OUR interests. We want representatives who will bring home the bacon to our district, never mind that the interests of our district may stand in direct opposition to the interests of a neighboring district. If they don’t bring home the bacon, we get new representatives. 

The government can’t fix greed. We want more and bigger stuff. We mortgage the future to have stuff we want now. As one cliché states it, “We buy stuff we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t like.” The government can’t fix that! Oh, the government can (apparently?) forgive student loan debt, but it can’t change the inner desire for more and bigger and better stuff.

The government can’t fix gluttony. We’re concerned about the escalating costs of health care, yet we continue to overindulge in every guilty pleasure. I’m preaching to myself now. We make poor health choices, fail to exercise and live healthy lives and then want the government to deal with the obesity problem, and heart problems and circulation problems. Don’t shout me down, please! I’m simply pointing out the obvious. 

I love you, but the problem is not with the government. The problem is with us. Our problem is a spiritual problem. Sin comes when we reject God, when we do what is right in our own eyes.

Hope in the Darkness

Perhaps I’ve painted a dark picture with a broad brush, but there is hope. There is a prescription for what ails us. Both political parties talks about the need for change, and promises change, but real change won’t happen with a new leader or new legislation. Real, lasting change will occur when God’s people choose to trust God and turn to Him.

I’m reminded of a most famous Old Testament passage from 2 Chronicles this morning. At the time the passage was written Israel was at its zenith. They had just finished all of King Solomon’s building projects with the high point being the Temple in Jerusalem.

It was a time of great prosperity and peace, and national pride was running high. It was during the dedication of the temple that God gives a warning. God said when the rain doesn’t fall and the locusts eat your crops—in other words—when the nation does into a downturn, this is what needs to happen:

14  “Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14 NLT)

The prescription for us and our nation is prayer.

The Temple was to be a reminder of God’s sacred presence among the people.

Were we to read all of King Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the Temple, we would discover the importance of the practice of prayer in maintaining the nation’s covenant relationship with God. Solomon, and later Isaiah, understood the Temple was “a house of prayer for all nations” (Is. 56:7), and Jesus, himself echoed that sentiment when he drove the moneychangers from the Temple upon his entry into Jerusalem.

Right relationship with God, whether in the Old or New Testament, is rooted in prayer. Understand though, that prayer is not effective because of our righteousness, but because of the power possessed by the One to whom prayer is offered.

What was once true of a building in Jerusalem is now true of a body…the body of Christ, the Church. The Apostle Paul states it this way: 

19 “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:19 – 20 NLT)

We bring glory to God when we pray. We cannot pray without humility. Humility is nothing more than acknowledging our dependence upon God.

F.B. Meyer said, “I used to think that God’s gifts were on shelves one above the other, and that the taller we grew in Christian character the easier we could reach them. I now find that God’s gifts are on shelves one beneath the other. It is not a question of growing taller, but of stooping down, to get His best gifts.”

Humility brings us to God, and our coming gives Him glory.

There is no effective prayer without devotion. That’s what it means to “seek” God’s face. Worship, generosity and service are tangible ways we show our devotion. It also means seeking God’s will for every area of our lives, and passing the faith to our families and communities.

There also is no effective prayer without repentance. Both the Old and New Testament words for repentance mean “to turn.” It means a change of direction from sin and toward God—an about-face, if you will.

Repentance is a faith response to God’s offer of forgiveness. We believe God will forgive, therefore we turn to him. When we repent of our sin—our pride, our self-centeredness, our greed, our gluttony and our idolatry—then, we’ll see the power of God revealed in Jesus Christ. We’ll find the help for which we search.

Prayer has the power to fix our problems because prayer brings us into the sacred presence of God Almighty, and it is God’s power in Jesus Christ that heals and forgives and reconciles all that is broken…in this nation…in every nation…     

Here’s our challenge: to humble ourselves before God, seek His face and repent of all that separates us from Him and from each other.

Join me as I pray for our nation, for the election and those leaders who have offered themselves to lead us.

That’s as neutral as I can be these days, though I believe the cultural moment demands that the disciple of Jesus Christ be something other than Switzerland.

This post is already too long and I’ve still got too many things I want to write. I’ll just stop now by reiterating: Pray, pray, pray!

The problem really is with us.

Until next time, keep looking up…

When Fast is Fast Enough (or, Eight Lessons from a Facebook Fast)…

/ pastorlynnmalone / Leave a comment

There will be a bit of irony in this post. I can’t help that (well, I guess I could help it, but then I wouldn’t write this post and you wouldn’t have this post to read–not that you’re going to read it, but…). It’s ironic that I’m using social media to share lessons learned while on a social media fast, but this is the 21st Century, so what’ s a guy to do?

facebookfast2I did a twenty-six day Facebook fast in July. Why twenty-six days, you ask? I originally planned for the entire month of July, but then I realized that my wife was going on the youth mission trip and would be posting photos and updates on the trip and I wanted to keep up with the group and with her, so I broke the fast on the 26th of July. There are a few lessons I learned about social media, Facebook and myself during those twenty-six days. I thought I would share those this morning. The lessons I learned are:

  1. I missed Facebook for, oh, about one day. I learned I didn’t really miss it at all. The longer I got into the fast the less I thought about logging on to check my newsfeed, or other people’s status updates.
  2. I learned that Facebook was limiting my creativity. My productivity soared during those twenty-six days. I wasn’t constantly checking updates.
  3. I learned that Facebook was hindering my spirituality. I spent more time in the Bible early in the morning instead of scrolling through the newsfeed to see what I missed overnight–like why would I even care what happened?
  4. I learned that people are not nearly as interested in my life as I think they are. A Facebook fast can be very humbling! Not once in the twenty-six days did anyone ask me about my latest status.
  5. I learned that I don’t need to share with the world every thought that comes into my head. I had a tendency to share random thoughts posted as status updates on my “wall.” Most of those random thoughts are probably more suited to Twitter, but I just don’t use Twitter that much. Actually, I discovered that I didn’t really miss other people’s random thoughts. It dawned on me–why would other people miss my random thoughts (outside my mother and my wife, perhaps).
  6. I learned I wasn’t as angry all the time. A huge percentage of what people post is negative and divisive. It’s impossible to filter everything, and as I scrolled I couldn’t help but catch a headline denouncing “conservative” Christians, or “progressive” Christians, or the President, or the “Republicans,” or whom or whatever. Scrolling my Facebook newsfeed, I was always angry, that’s just not very Christ-like, and for as much as I fall short, I sincerely want to be more Christ-like. Oh, my…and the comments! People can be down-right mean. I didn’t miss many of the comments, at all!
  7. I learned I wasn’t offended all the time. In tandem with number six, there are a lot of offensive posts on Facebook. The most offensive thing is stupidity, and there is much that is stupid posted on Facebook (confession: I’ve even posted stupid things before).
  8. I learned that “real” life is in the real world. I was much more deeply engaged with the people around me instead of the people in the device in my hand or on my desk. I now wonder how much “real” life I actually missed by being logged on so much previously. After all, we know people post on Facebook mostly those things that make them look good (excluding, of course the occasional drama king or queen who insists on posting the latest sad tale of their life–yes, Facebook can become very narcissistic!), so what I was seeing wasn’t “real” life, at all.

Here are a few tips that I am employing as I re-engage with Facebook and other social media (though, I’m not greatly connected outside Facebook). Maybe they’ll help you if you’re feeling the need to be a little less connected.

  • Remove the Facebook app (or Twitter, or Instagram, or Pinterest, or Vine, or…whatever your social media of choice is) from your smartphone. And, log out from your social media accounts when you’re done. If you must access social media, access it through your browser app. I discovered the longer it takes to log in to something, the less I’m likely to do it.
  • Do not stay logged in to Facebook while you’re working. It’ll be a distraction from the work in front of you.
  • Turn off your push notifications. You don’t need to know every time someone tags you in a photo, or mentions your name in a status update.
  • Calendar your time to be on social media. I’ve discovered if I put something on my calendar, I generally abide by the calendar. Social media isn’t a bad thing, so it’s not to be avoided at all costs. Simply be intentional about the time spent on social media. If you want 30 minutes a day, okay. Calendar 30 minutes a day. Then, stick to it.

Let me encourage you to un-plug, even if it’s only for a day or two. Seriously, it will deepen your spiritual life if the first thing you pick up in the morning is a Bible instead of a smartphone or tablet. Maybe this post was helpful. Maybe it wasn’t. Either way, you can check it out on Facebook or Twitter, and that’s quite ironic, isn’t it?

Until next time, keep looking up…