It seems like only yesterday that blogging was all the rage. It was an opportunity for persons to air their thoughts and for others to read them and possibly add comments of their own. Of course, Facebook soon came to be the new king of the hill and remains incredibly popular. What an easy way to share our life with others. But now, there is a new sheriff in town: Twitter. What is Twitter you might ask. I am not the best to answer that, but I'll do the best I can. Twitter is a way in which persons or organizations can disseminate brief bits of information to those who are interested in knowing. If you are familiar with Facebook, its kind of like a more frequent updating of your status. It is you saying, "This is what I am doing right now." I recently heard the story of someone using Twitter to give updates on the labor and delivery of their first child. Of course, it can also be used to make announcements and so forth. All of it in 140 characters or less. Its not primarily about the big things, but more on staying up to date with the little things in life.
As for me, I have yet to jump on the Twitter bandwagon, although my wife recently mad that leap. I suppose it is only a matter of time. What strikes me is this move to living in the blurbs. You know what I mean, only taking in tidbits rather than the whole story. I confess I do this often. Like a dinosaur, perhaps, I still get the daily paper. However, I rarely read the whole thing. I scan the headlines for something that stands out to me. The danger in this is never knowing the whole story. There are times when we just have to take the time to find out the whole story, especially when it comes to people. Our stories are so unique, so interesting.
Perhaps, Tweeting is telling the story, just a little at a time. It certainly seems to be resonating with people right now. That is, until the next great innovation comes along...
Rev Chris
Thursday, April 23, 2009
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4 comments:
Well, I took the step and signed on for Twitter. If anyone is interested - http://twitter.com/RevOutLoud
Chris -
I am conflicted about this; I know we are to "be IN the world, not OF it!" My In-the-World mode says to participate; my Not-of-the-World mode says, be wary. I lament the reduced opportunities for face-to-face interactions with my fellow human beings that our fast-paced society seems to demand, and is this one more way to avoid those personal interactions on the part of a lot of people? But . . . could tweeting be viewed as related to journal-keeping, which our founder, John Wesley certainly participated in? Whaddaya think?
My feelings have been similar to yours on jumping on board the latest trends. But, as I study Jesus, he always went to where the people were at. Mark 2:15-17 comes to mind. It may be stretching it, but I can make the connection to journal keeping. Maybe a stronger link in my mind would be that of Christian conferencing; staying connected and being a part of a community. Today, it is so much easier to be separated by hundreds or even thousands of miles. But, thanks to technology, we can still stay connected without meeting at the corner coffee shop to catch up. However, No amount of technology can replace live interaction. So while its great to be a part of Facebook or Twitter or the next big thing, we can never think that its ok to withdraw from one another and chain ourselves to our computers.
Thanks, Chris -
I especially celebrate your last comment. I am NOT looking for ways to spend more time in front of a computer/TV screen. No cable or satellite dish for me!
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