I've been on Facebook for several years now, but I only recently began really using it. I once prided myself on being hard to reach. Now I have a Blackberry (or at least a Motorola knockoff) and a blog (that wall fell four years ago), and yes, a Facebook account that I admittedly interact with several times daily. Of course, working in writing and publishing puts me in front of a computer most of the day, so I'm usually only a click away from seeing what hundreds of my friends and relatives are up to. And telling them what I'm up to. That temptation is sometimes too much to resist. I knew I had reached a new low the other day when I announced to the world from Wendy's what I had just ordered from the value menu. Dave Thomas would have been proud. Or deeply disturbed.
What amazes me is how many United Methodists I now know from blogging and from Facebook. In today's culture, it seems like the more isolated we get, the more connected we get. I was in a coffee house the other day, and there were literally 30-40 people there. But there wasn't much talking going on that day because almost everyone had a laptop computer! My guess is, a fair number of them had some social network site up, if only in the background. Like it or not, Pandora's box is open and this stuff is here to stay.
I set up a Facebook group for the forthcoming Wesley Study Bible, and in a little over 48 hours, approximately 150 people have joined it. No commercials, no ads, just word of mouth. That's the power of the Internet and social networking. Some of the Bible's contributing scholars and pastors have even found their way into the group. That's pretty cool.
If you're a pastor, or someone involved with ministry to people on any level, especially to young adults, I encourage you to keep up with the mainstream technological trends. Churches with no web sites (or sites that haven't been updated since 2003) just aren't going to make a positive impression to the young adults they're trying to reach. And get a Facebook account (or something similar), even if you've been resisting social networking sites so far. Why? Because that's how a whole generation is connecting now. Technology, when used properly, is a powerful tool for the Kingdom of God. (When used improperly, it can become an idol. So be sure to use technology to enhance face-to-face relationships, not as a substitute for them.)
Places to connect with other United Methodists:
- The Methoblog. A lot of information and a lot of Methodist bloggers. If you have a blog, you can add yours too.
- Facebook. Get an account already. Find your friends and add them. Then be sure to join the Wesley Report Blog Network.
- UPDATE: Okay, maybe I was unfair to Twitter. So I revised this post and set up an account to give it a shot. My page is here.
