Social Media, Bias, Jesus & Us.

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • Investopedia.com defines social media as a computer-based technology that facilitates the sharing of ideas, information and building community through virtual networks.
  • Some of the earlier social medial platforms include AOL chatrooms (powered by dial-up), MySpace and Pana.ma.
  • TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, What’s app and Instagram are just a few of the top social media sites.
  • While these communities are wonderful for connection and information for many, for others, it can cause or exacerbate “cognitive bias”.
  • Cognitive bias is a distortion in thinking that occurs when people process and interpret information in the world around them (in this case, social media) and, that processing without Christ’s involvement can negatively affects our thinking, decisions and actions.
  • Our task is to allow the Word of God to govern how we think.

https://www.dailyinfographic.com/8-ways-social-media-messes-with-our-brains

Scripture references:

Fear of missing out (FOMO) | If I am not always connected, I may miss something. | Fear is not of God.

2 Timothy 1:7

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Proverbs 3:5-6

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Psalm 84:11

11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

Expectation of availability | I have to reply to every comment, post, email, message immediately. | Idolatry

Colossians 3:23-24.

23 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

Galatians 5:19-21

19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,

21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

Catastrophizing |You send a message, the recipient is not responsive, so must be angry, stupid, etc.| Evil thinking

Matthew 15:18-20

18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.

19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:

20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.

I Corinthians 13:4-5

4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

Unfair Comparison | She posts such nice travel pictures all the time. It’s not fair I have to struggle.| Envy.

1 Timothy 6:6

But godliness with contentment is great gain.

Philippians 4:11-12

11 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.

12 I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.

I Thessalonians 5:17

Pray without ceasing.

BCU Fam, we do not have to live fear, worry, wrong thinking, or discontentment. God is able to deliver is from people-pleasing, renew our minds in Him, so we will have a thankful heart, knowing He will supply all of our needs. Let’s pray about it!

Father, in the name of Jesus, as we come before You, today, we thank You, SO much for who You are, and what You do for us! Thank You for bringing these areas to our attention. Please forgive us for the times we allowed fear/fear of people to govern our thoughts and actions. Bless us to remember that we serve You and we will do so with distinction. Thank You for delivering us from evil thoughts about the people made in your image. Bless us to walk in the patient and kind love outlined in I Corinthians 13.

Thank You for reminding us that You are a present Help, Jesus and a supplier of our needs. Please remember those who are struggling right now financially, physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.In any area we need help, we can call on You, Jesus for that help, and rest in the assurance that You heard our cry and will answer. Thank you for sending jobs, reconciling relationships, healing, strengthening tired bodies, setting someone free, soothing anxious minds, and healing hearts in the name of Jesus! In the meantime, You will sustain and keep our minds in perfect peace as we keep our minds stayed on You and thinking on things that are pure, honest, just, full of virtue and praise. We thank you for the victory in Jesus name, we pray, Amen.

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, X,and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––-we are LIVE on Facebook, at 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on whatever platform BCU is available on. Some of those platforms are Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify, and many more of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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Break every chain…letter, meme…

Hey there BCU Family!

As usual, you have the option of listening to our podcast (click the BCU avatar below to listen), reading the notes or BOTH. In any case, we pray the podcast blesses you. If so, please thumbs up or leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy your study!

Chain letters date back to the 1900’s when they were delivered via postal service asking for monetary donations. My first encounter with a chain letter goes back to around the 8th grade, where the letters were passed during class–and disobeying the commands promised disastrous results. I thought I left that stuff back in 19xxxx! But here we are in 2018, with instant and constant access to the Internet, in particular Facebook, where many of us are inundated with memes, posts and inbox messages, asking, or even demanding quid pro quo action.

  • “If you forward this letter to 40 people, you will receive a check in the mail”.
  • “So and so is giving away 30 million dollars, but you must send this to 100 of your Facebook friends.”
  • “Here is a rose of love. If you love me, you’ll send it back to me and pass it on to 12 others.”
  • “If you are not ashamed of the Jesus, pass this along. If you don’t you are ashamed of God.”
  • “THE LAST time I [sic] prayed this prayer, over 5,000 people received shocking Miracles. You have [sic] type Amen and shared post but you didn’t receive anything! This night is your own night.”
  • “I pray that as you read this, you will be showered with blessings. Type Amen and share if you agree.”
  • I stretch my hands and pray for 10,000 PEOPLE, things have delayed in your life but from the time you type: Amen and share this post[sic] Receive your miracle.

For many, passing and typing seems harmless, but there a problem. These messages are steeped  in lies, fear and superstition, all which have no place in the believers life.

First off, the lies that are told on these posts are outrageous. How do we know that Bill and Melinda Gates are giving away money? Are we positive that Tyler Perry is blessing people randomly? Has anyone done the research and gotten the scoop from a credible, reliable source? One Holy-Ghost filled believer I spoke to said “well, I don’t know if he [Tyler Perry] is giving away money, but I passed it along anyway”.

BCU Fam, as people of God, we are responsible for every word we say and deed we participate in (See Matthew 12:36 and Romans 14:12). If we are unsure if something is untruthful, we really should not spread the information. Not only are we guilty of lying, but we are encouraging the practice of idolatry. Colossians 3:5-7, 9-10 reminds us to:

5 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:

Many of the memes promise wealth and good fortune if we obey it’s commands. Are we not content with what we have? Are we truly trusting God? 

6 For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:

7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.

9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;

10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

Next, what Scripture supports God tallying up our “likes”, “shares” and  “amens” in order to bless us? Hebrews 11:6 says that without faith it’s impossible to please Him [God]. He that comes to God must believe that He is, and that is a rewarder of them that diligently (earnestly, swiftly and with zeal) seek Him. It’s just that simple, BCU Fam. No complications needed.

So, what about the fear of breaking the chain?  Will God really be upset if you scrolled past a post concerning Him and didn’t click like? Will He not answer the prayers of an ill individual because we didn’t type amen? Does catastrophic disaster await because we didn’t pass on a message? Tormenting, demanding, ultimatum fear comes from the devil. 2 Timothy 1:7 reminds us that God has NOT given us the spirit of fear, but of love, power and a sound mind. Faith-filled, loving saints rest in the power of the Holy Ghost to supply needs  and the sound mind that resists the urge to pass foolishness along. Period.

Next, let’s talk about the superstition part. Superstition is defined as “a widely held, but unjustified belief in supernatural causation leading to certain consequences of an action or event, or a practice based on such a belief”.  To break it down even further, the superstitious meme-passing, is based on the unfounded “faith” that following an unbiblical command will release some “magical power” from God.

Moreover, superstition is directly linked to idolatry. We think of idols as little tiki statues that old Mr. Hanalay passed down to his family, but anything we place our trust in over God is an idol. So, when we type “amen” and share in hopes of getting a financial blessing or healing, our faith is in the actions we performed around the post, (idol), rather than asking God for what we need and trusting Him to supply those needs. Matthew 6:33 says that we are to seek the kingdom of God first and all His righteousness and all these things shall be added to you (See Matthew 6:25-33 for the full context).

BCU  Family, the bottom line is that God does NOT endorse lying, living in fear, or idolatry in any fashion. Those who practice such behaviors do not inherit the kingdom of God (See Revelation 21:8  and Galatians 5:20). Rather than entertain these demonic communications, let’s practice living Philippians 4:6-9.

6 Be anxious for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.

And rest on Philippians 4:19–

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

From here on out, instead of passing these messages around, let’s break every chain Amen?! Amen!

So what are your thoughts around chain letters and posts? Were you aware of the upsurge in these communications? Did you indulge in them? (Judgement free zone here). Head down to the comments section and let’s continue the conversation!

In the meantime, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, Twitter,  and Instagram,  You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Stitcher Radio , Google Play, and Apple podcasts!

Thank you SO much for stopping by. God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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