This week has been a week of living on the “Unfollow” button on Facebook. Whether people are posting memes or links supporting the president or attacking Trump, I’ve just had to hide people. These links and memes have become an echo chamber – repeating the same rhetoric over and over and over. Nobody’s really adding anything new to the conversation.
The people who agree with you are just going to agree more, while the ones who disagree are just going to disagree more. Nothing is changing except the disparity between the two sides.
So what’s the alternative? We all have this desire inside us to respond to what’s happening in the world. Here are some ideas that will actually yield good results.
1. Pray.
No, seriously, pray. Freak out to God if you need. Tell Him your fears. Ask Him to guide you. Ask Him to change things. Heck, whine to Him. He already knows what’s in your heart, so expressing it doesn’t really shock Him. Instead, it allows Him to speak and respond while you express. Start there.
2. Get into an actual conversation with someone who believes differently.
Find that Trump supporter, or find that president hater, and go to coffee with them. Buy them coffee. Invest in them, and then listen. Ask why they believe how they believe. My guess is, you’ll actually discover there’s some rationality and heart to what they believe. You can share your opinion if you need, but I imagine you’ll experience more peace from just listening.
Rhetoric doesn’t change hearts. Love does.
3. Research.
Again, if there’s rationality behind each argument and opposing side, maybe you just need to figure out what that is. See what’s really going on. What happens as you increase your knowledge is that you discover things aren’t so black and white. You might actually change your mind a few times as you learn new things. It’s okay – actually better – to be a bit more on the fence about these things. No one side holds all the truth.
4. Do something, like actually physically.
Protest. Give to an organization. Call your representatives. Put action to your feelings. Posting a meme or a link online is the easiest thing to do, which means you’re just adding noise to all the other people doing the minimum possible to express themselves. Action will go further than rhetoric.
Just remember: Don’t repay evil with evil. Both Peter and Paul said it…probably Mary too. So no matter how evil you see the other side to be, don’t repay them evil.
5. Pray.
Did I mention pray? Yeah? I did? Well, I’m saying it again. Begin and end everything with prayer. It’s the only thing that can cut to the heart of the matter – especially your heart. Ask God to give you love for the opposition. Ask Him to give you wisdom on how to act. Ask Him to help you see the world as He sees it.
Rhetoric doesn’t change minds. Love does. So stop adding to the echo chamber of harsh rhetoric and snarky memes. Biased links and vitriolic videos. Actually do something that will bring a new perspective to the conversation. That’s the best way to respond.
Jonathan, right on point. The point of ‘pray’ being the focus twice mentioned is critical. My Facebook feed also inspired my post this week where I urged people to learn to ‘vent without resent’ (http://genewhitehead.com/vent-without-resent/).We’re a distracted and divided nation and having war on social media is only going to breed passive aggressiveness until something really breaks. We can’t sustain this division, your double point on prayer is once again, absolutely critical.