When I sat down to write this morning, I had a momentary panic. I realized that one of us (probably me) had forgotten to turn off the wireless whatchamacallit from Verizon the last time we used it. We've just gone through the ordeal of having someone hack into our wireless service, apparently to stream music or video or maybe download games. Neither of us was web savvy enough to realize just how big a gig is. So when our data usage went way up, I thought it was the result of all the work I was doing, which necessitated a lot more internet research. After the umpteenth "data usage alert," however, even I figured out something was suspicious and dug into our account history with three different Verizon reps, who ultimately concluded, "You're right—this looks odd." We discovered lots of gig-devouring internet activity in the wee hours, when I'm frequently awake but not using that device, and Dave is snoozing, so it can't be him. That leaves us with Hank and Cheeto the Cats or a hacker. So now we take security precautions we had no idea were necessary. We were told that whoever did this (a) somehow figured out or went around the factory-issued password, which I should've changed at the beginning, and (b) is very close by. A neighbor.
That made me ponder the whole business of social networking and what it means to be a friend and neighbor. I imagine our hacker as a teenager who's gleefully thinking, "Wow, free games!" Or an adult who's slyly thinking, "Ha! Free movies!" Either way, I'm sure in my heart of hearts that they don't know us. Whoever indirectly dipped into our bank account has a cyber connection to us but no personal connection. The neighbors who actually know us would never steal from us because they care about us, and they know we care about them.
I'm rereading the Book of Romans right now, and my little internet panic made me return to the opening of this letter, written to Roman Christians whom Paul had yet to meet. He opens by expressing his faith in Christ and his calling to spread the Gospel, by giving thanks for the Christians to whom he is writing, and by assuring them that he prays for them regularly. And then he shares this hope: "I pray that now at last by God's will the way may be opened for me to come to you. I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith" (Romans 1:10-12).
I do not believe social media is inherently evil. If I did, I would not be blogging on the Sabbath:) People reach out to each other for prayer, encouragement, and support all the time on Facebook, and that's a good thing. But this cyber world can be deceptive sometimes. It can make us think we're there for each other when we're not. It can make us forget to pick up the phone and have a conversation (which one of my Baylor buddies and I have been attempting for about a year now) or pack up a covered dish and have a face-to-face visit with a friend who's sick or feeling low. Paul wrote such a beautiful letter to the Romans, but he wouldn't be satisfied until he could see them in person, which he eventually did.
I'm reminding myself this morning that, while "the new" can be great and wonderful, there's no substitute for "the old"—a real cup of coffee with a real neighbor or a hug from an actual friend who's standing in your living room. I stand by that commitment to the personal . . . right here on my blog:)
So here's the "Baylor buddy" thinking about ya as I pack up for a "girls weekend" in NYC (me and 3 NC elem. teachers). What's your life like next week?
Posted by: Anne | August 06, 2014 at 05:32 AM