A Bee In My Bonnet

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Ok, something has really been buzzing my bonnet lately and I am just going to come out and say it. There is a stench in the air that is really irritating the nostrils of others online. It seems there is more and more dirty laundry being aired out over the Internet wires than ever before. It's gotten easy for applications like Facebook to be used as a battle field for people to shoot word darts to others and think nothing of it. If someone is going through a rough patch in life, then lets just plaster it out there on facebook. After all, everyone just wants to hear all the sorted details...don't they!?!

Now this isn't just happening only on Facebook, people are hanging their laundry from every clothes line they can find....twitter, blogging, myspace and whatever else is out there for them to use. It's just sickening to me. Since when did we become such a heartless society that we have taken the trust of our families and friends and exploited them by showing the world their "ugly" side? Why is it socially acceptable to let everyone know the good and bad details of our children's lives, our marital lives, our Church relations, our friends and family, etc. You name it, if someone has a beef with another person you can find the latest update on any social network site. GIVE ME A BREAK! If you have 200+ "friends" on your facebook account, do you honestly think all of them want to hear every sorted detail of the issues you and your family might be going through right now? I realize that there are those types of people out there that just gravitate and feed off of others misfortune or offenses, and it is just that type of person that help egg others on in sharing more than they need to and should online. But the bottom line is this...there are some things that just need to remain private.

Instead of looking for others to "take your side" or help add fuel to the fire, stop and think for a moment before you post anything. When things subside and the dust settles in whatever temporary situation your going through, do you really want your spouse, child, clergy, family member or friend to find out what you have said behind their backs? Will they appreciate knowing that you have shared intimate details with the whole world to read...details that were never meant for others? Put the shoe on the other foot....how would YOU appreciate someone you thought you could trust airing YOUR business online? I doubt you would like it very much. So instead of letting your mouth shoot off through your keyboard...stop and think of how you are hurting others. Think also about those that may be connected to you as a friend online...do you really think they enjoy reading your latest update and then walking away feeling as if they had just been vomited on by you? What about your testimony as a Christian? There are many Christians out there that put on the outfit of what a Christian should look like when they are face to face with you, but behind closed doors...or should I say, open Internet lines, they are destroying their testimony by acting in a manner that is far from Christian-like.

So maybe a better question to ponder before you type is this...."If JESUS were on my "friend" list and was able to read every status update I post, what would HE think of my actions?"