I still haven’t seen The Social Network. I like movies and I like Facebook so it’s seemingly in my wheelhouse. Even though I haven’t seen it, the main impression I received was that Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t that great of a guy.
After getting trapped in Facebook’s Timeline feature I’m inclined to agree.
Timeline allows any user to go through his or her life on Facebook from the time he or she joined. It’s a rather interesting experience.
I was able to learn that I joined Facebook on October 2, 2006.
Up until I started tweeting in March 2009, I referenced myself in the third person when making status updates.
I need to take more pictures to give my timeline more variety.
It was fun to see how my life was captured on Facebook three or four years ago. However, it was far too easy to get sucked in and waste a lot of time.
It was also kind of discouraging because I don’t know if I’ve changed all that much since October 2, 2006. Sure I graduated seminary, started my career and married the love of my life. Just because I went through those life transitions, though, doesn’t mean I’ve actually changed.
In May 2009 I was excited to go to Las Vegas. In October 2011 I was excited to go to Las Vegas.
On May 12, 2008 I was writing a sermon at Starbucks. Yesterday I was writing a sermon at Starbucks.
On December 6, 2007 I was thinking about seeing I Am Legend for The Dark Knight prologue. This weekend I might see Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol for The Dark Knight Rises prologue.
My life circumstances have changed but sometimes I don’t feel like I’ve changed.
It’s easy to get discouraged because our lives with God are a process, a life-long process that won’t see their fulfillment until we stand before God. So often I wish that I could be the finished product now and spend the rest of my life being awesome for God. God’s awesome enough for the both of us, though, and he’s more than happy to grow me through a process.
And if it makes God happy then it should make me happy.
Spiritual growth is a process and if we can remember that then we’ll limit how discouraged we get. We may not feel like we’re growing at the rate we’d like. If we keep our eyes on Christ, though, then ultimately we’ll get to where God wants us to be precisely when he wants us to get there.
I just hope there’s a milestone marker for that on Facebook.
How do you stay encouraged on your path of spiritual growth?
Sometimes by thinking about people who have overcome difficulties. Sometimes by reading. Sometimes by talking to friends. Sometimes by praying. Once or twice by crying out “Please Lord, I’ve had enough!” And no, it doesn’t always help.