I am particularly bothered by something I heard on the news recently. It was a caution to Facebookers and Twitterers everywhere about over-sharing. Don't share too much about your life through these venues, because people don't want to hear it, and they WILL make fun of you. The news caster even went on to talk about a website set up specifically to mock over-sharers, and bring shame to their posts.
Then, that same afternoon, ironically on Facebook, a young friend of mine posted about how she doesn't want to hear about the woes of people, and that "Being real is not about spilling out your woes. Being real is focusing on the good things in life. Like....awesome cold weather."
Mmmkay.
These two things got me thinking.... I wonder if Jesus agrees. I wonder if fear of over-sharing and weather talk is really how He wants us to operate. Does He want us to be critical and intolerant of the daily lives of others? As a Christian, though faaaaar from the mark, I am doing the best I can to learn and practice the loving characteristics of God. It's interesting.... I've NEVER heard Him say, "Michele, you are over-sharing and I don't want to hear it. Can we please just talk about happy things?"
So.... what gives me the right to say that to someone else?
The God I know is much more merciful and compassionate than I could ever dream of being (Psalm 103:8). So... what if I were to act with even just the teeniest bit of that compassion and stop shutting people down? What if, instead of cutting someone off, I open up my ears and my heart to hear their story? What if I extend my arms to receive them exactly as they are, and walk with them towards healing? Doesn't that seem like the more Jesus-y way?
I mean, life is hard, people. And it's painful. It just is. Our streets are filled with desperate, broken people who are struggling to survive, struggling through very complicated issues, sometimes struggling to take their next breath. If they decide to share their lives through social media or otherwise, I think that's a GOOD thing. It is one step closer to healing. Far too many of us are living bound up and closed off, because we've been told too many times that no one wants to hear it.
That just can't be right.
Here's a little reality check.... despite what we think, we are NOT the judge and jury for what people can and can't say about what's going on in their lives. Now is probably a really good time to stop shutting each other out and setting up standards for what is "too much" information, and start allowing grace, mercy and compassion to be the guide. LISTEN. Don't judge. Be real. Allow others to be real. Toss out the myth of over-sharing, and let genuine love take its place.
God is big enough to handle what people share. Are you?
