 News and Social Media Fatigue
According to Pew Research Center, “almost seven-in-ten Americans have news fatigue.” That number is very alarming and something that we as the church must consider in our everyday lives. The article states, “If you feel like there is too much news and you can’t keep up, you are not alone.” That is true, as I often myself feel this way, but how do we prevent this from happening in the first place. I believe it starts with remembering that the enemy makes it a mission to keep us distracted. He uses every resource at his disposal to keep our minds occupied and off of our main calling, which is to glorify God (Psalm 57:2, 1 Peter 2:9, Colossians 1:16). When we pray, we should mention the Lord’s Prayer as there are significant sections that allude to factors that impact us even today such as distraction. Matthew 6:13 is a great example that asks God to “lead us not into temptation, but to deliver us from evil.” Leading us away from temptation would include leading us away from the distractions that may not be necessarily bad in and of themselves, but are present as a distraction set by the enemy. In our path to the Lord’s will for our lives, there are many snares such as in Psalm 119:110, 140:5, 141:9; Jeremiah 18:22. Social media and digital entertainment offers the same type or source of a possible distraction from our purpose. Just open your Facebook, Twitter, or Netflix app and you will find a million and one reasons to stay occupied for the next two hours, but what are we being fed during this block of time? Is anything we are getting out of these distractions positive? Maybe some of it can be positive, but is it helping us live out our purpose, or is it distracting us from the Lord’s desire for our life. I believe that it is more of a distraction than most of us would like to admit. This does not mean that you spend every waking hour pushing yourself to maximum efficiency by only doing occupational, ministry, and family work, but it does mean that we are good stewards with our time. When we lose track of priorities and time maintenance, we begin to find ourselves slipping into activities that become habits. It takes around 21 days to form a habit, whether it is good or bad. Now, think about the last 21 days of your life, has the activity been purpose habit forming, or unproductive habit forming? Everyone goes through seasons of life and adjustments along the way. It’s a part of life and the process of God forming us as his clay into the masterpiece that He wants us to be. Even the world goes through seasons, however we should not force unproductive seasons and periods of time in our lives where God is forced to intervene. As we grow in Christ, we should grow in our ability to be sensitive to the Spirit’s conviction and self-control. There are several other posts in our blog about what to do when there is unrest in the world and news, as there has been the last few weeks. There are also several others on how to prevent burnout and even the changing seasons in our life. Regardless of where we are habit, stress, or relationship wise with God, we should start by talking with Him. Prayer is how we communicate with God. Before you judge, just remember that prayer doesn’t have to be some religious ritual, but rather a conversation with God. You speak and He listens. However, that conversation feels and goes a lot better when you have made a commitment to God as your personal savior. If you would like more information on how to make Christ your personal Savior and develop a relationship with Him, check us out here. After a relationship and conversation, comes the study and learning about God’s ways via His Word, The Holy Bible. Becoming a part of a regular fellowship would also be a step forward into further developing your relationship with God through His body of believers who can help sustain and lift you up in prayer. As you grow and develop in the Lord’s presence, knowledge, and conviction, the Spirit will give you guidance on how to grow in the Lord and avoid the distractions such as those we have spoken of (Galatians 5:22-23). As we grow in our relationship with God, we develop a desire to share His love and life giving power with others. One-by-one, we can begin to help the neighbors, coworkers, friends, and even strangers around us know the love of Christ. Perhaps they struggle with the negative news and social media of the world such as many others. While the enemy may come to “steal, kill, and destroy,” we can remind others that Christ wouldn’t have us suffer, but to live in “abundance” and joy (John 10:10; Romans 15:13). Let us bind together as the body of Christ and pray for one another, that we might find strength through the mighty God in us, to resist the attempts of the enemy to distract and bind us. May we be resistant to the attempts of emotional sabotage and control of our minds. May we possess minds of Christ and allow our bodily members to be the vessels of His works. In God’s Heavenly name we pray, Amen! Sources: Pew Research Center http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/06/05/almost-seven-in-ten-americans-have-news-fatigue-more-among-republicans/
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Elisha’s Life Giving Bones
2 Kings 13:20-21 (NKJV) 20 Then Elisha [a]died, and they buried him. And the raiding bands from Moab invaded the land in the spring of the year. 21 So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet. (NIV) “Now Moabite raiders used to enter the country every spring. 21 Once while some Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a band of raiders; so they threw the man’s body into Elisha’s tomb. When the body touched Elisha’s bones, the man came to life and stood up on his feet. 2 Kings 2:9 (KJV) “And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. Gill’s Exposition says, “and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha; that being nearest, they opened it, or rather rolled away the stone from it, and threw the body in great haste” 
This man’s body was literally thrown into the grave because the Israelites were certainly in a hurry.
Due to the force of his body being thrown into the grave, this man’s body crashed into Elisha’s body and made contact with his bones. What I find interesting is that during this time period, a loved one would often return to a grave which was usually a cave and place the bones of the decomposed body in a box called a bone box. Obviously Elisha’s bones had not yet been placed in a box or if they had, the box must have somehow been knocked open. Regardless, we see here that the bones must have become exposed because the body of this man touched the bones of Elisha. The bones have always played a significant role in the Word of God. God used a rib bone from Adam to create Eve in Genesis 2:22 Not one bone was broken in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Psalm 34:20 and John 19:36 Proverbs 17:22 “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.” Jeremiah 20:9 says “Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.” Life and anointing has always been associated with the bones in the Word of God. When men are dead, it speaks of dry bones and when living it speaks of bones covered with flesh or having some type of significance. Just as those bones were exposed, so is your blessing, that new life calling, waiting for you to find it. God has already exposed this renewal, this giving of life, this blessing for you, all you have to do is reach out and touch it. All you have to do is identify that blessing or miracle, speak it, and grab ahold of it when given your opportunity. Seize this opportunity before you, it’s a blessing of the Lord! Don’t wait for someone to have to shove you into your calling, be a willing vessel of the Lord. Isn’t it amazing that this man’s blessing came right at a time when the enemy meant the people harm? Isn’t it awesome how God can turn a tragedy into a blessing? This same blessing hand is over us today! Let God Turn Your Misfortune Around For You Today! Reach Out And Touch The Bones of Blessings, The Bones of Anointing! This reminds me of an old song! Song: "Turn It Around" lyrics Chorus1 God said He would turn it around God said He would turn it around What the devil meant for evil God will make it good Turn around, turn around, turn around Chorus2 I know it may be midnight But joy is soon to come I know it may be midnight But joy is soon to come I know it feels like midnight But joy is soon to come Turn around, turn around, turn around Chorus3 Give Him all the praise Cause God is in control Give Him all the praise Cause God is in control Give Him all the praise God is in control Turn around, turn around, turn around Bridge Beauty for ashes Joy for my pain Praise for my sadness As I remember His name Mourning into dancing Sorrow into joy Every day will be sweeter Than the day before What the devil meant for evil God will make it good Turn around, turn around, turn around Turn around, turn around, turn around |