I met Celeste on a trip to the Abbey of the Genesee in 2012. We’re both writers and compared notes on meditation and silence, as well as spreading the Good News through words.

Celeste’s blog post yesterday was about how we need to think before we write on social media, as words can be damaging rather than healing. I reconnected with some old friends in Tulsa, OK last week and we shared similar comments about FACEBOOK and TWITTER: posts can be inspiring or hypercritical. I tend to bypass certain people on my Facebook page because they are always criticizing someone or something. Do they realize that their posts aren’t being read by the masses, and are quickly replaced by new items in our newsfeeds? Instead, I draw inspiration from people who build others up, rather than tearing them down.

Celeste continues, “Today we have an outpouring of instant communication. Absence of thought and quickness of speech. Technological advancements while able to contribute positively to our ability to spread the good news can also greatly wound and lead to confusion. If we claim to be a follower of Christ, if we claim to have faith, if we profess to be in communion with the others, then we are obligated, responsible, and accountable to build up and foster the fruits of what this means and cultivates in our lives. It is not about us and our feelings. It is about Christ and His Church.

“Let us place our energy and our voices first into the silence of prayer. Let us turn to our Lord, hear His voice and understand what it is He asks of us through our trusting obedience to Him and His will. If we disagree with someone let us pray first for them before we react. It is not about being ‘right’ it is about our Lord seated at the ‘right hand of the Father’ who is the judge of what is ‘right and just’.

“Let us not be victim of reacting before retaining, speaking before listening, and commenting before first comprehending. We can often realize in hindsight that if we first sought His sight and turned to our Lord with matters of faith, our concerns, and our confusions, we would gain clarity and understanding. To be a disciple of Christ and to strive to evangelize we must first be a student of silence and prayer. We must patiently endure and prayerfully wait upon the Lord.”

Thank you, Celeste, for a reminder not only about how to live our lives, but also how our modern technology has the lightning-quick ability to injure, or to apply salve to our wounds.

“It is not about us and our feelings. It is about Christ and His Church.”

Blessings, my friend,
Agatha

You can read Celeste’s post in its entirety at: http://bit.ly/1gvwJbT

(Click below for an MP3 file)