Eliminating the Noise of Social Media

Clearing noise from my life is a discipline of mine. I never exercise or run listening to music with ear phones. I prefer to use the time to clear my head. From time to time I will turn off the technology devices in my life - for a set period of time – so that I can manage my time better. I disconnect from gadgets and people so that I can connect with God. The amount of time I spend reading twitter updates is better used reading God’s Word. You get the idea.

I’ve written about this before here and here. (If you click these links, simply backspace to return here).

Here are some changes in my near future:

THIS BLOG – For those of you who follow my blog, I’m glad you find an occasional nugget of wisdom or insight from what you read here. I will maintain a moderate pace of writing and will be writing shorter posts too. Long drawn out blogs are dying. Church news, personal stuff, etc, will be the norm. There may be flurries of activity when something big happens or some drama unfolds. Otherwise, my bloggig will be at a measured pace.

FACEBOOK – Too many people are using Facebook to debate theology, politicize the gospel, take a stroll down memory lane, talk trash, gossip, or send me stuff that I am not interested in. I barely knew you back in elementary school, and I was predestined to not even care that you are a Calvinist. I don’t want to be a ninja, a pirate, or grow a farm. I don’t want people contacting me on Facebook like it’s some kind of dating service, and I’m not interested in getting together. I’ve got a life and Facebook is not it. I’m more interested in having friendships the old fashioned way, face-to-face.

Let’s face it. Facebook is fun, but it is also unhealthy. There are very few filters on Facebook, so it's easy for people say things online that they wouldn’t say in a normal conversation. They post pictures of themselves that are compromising. Not good. Then there are the middle-schoolish arguments. Plus, the constant inflow of messages from people (we sometimes barely know or don't even like) can consume a huge amount of time. It’s like a monkey on your back.

It is for these reasons I have decided to make some changes in how I approach social networking. I’m no longer going to use Facebook as an inbox. I already have an e-mail inbox on my computer and a paper inbox on my desk, and trying to keep up with comments and status updates on Facebook is too much. Additionally, I’m pulling back from Facebook for a while and will limit my activity there. I’m going to de-friend people I barely know too.