Chapter 4: The Effects of the Media Revolution

Media forms such as television, smart phones, print media, radio and Internet rule the world right now. It is almost impossible for anyone not to be connected to any part of the world.

In my case, the Internet and mobile phone have a huge impact on my every day life – whether inside or outside of my home.

Media and My Walk with Christ
It is hard to classify media as something negative or positive to someone’s journey with the Lord. What it brings is impact into your life. Whether that is a negative or a positive impact, it all depends on the person.

Some people claim that media has greatly affected their life negatively. For me, I highly think that the measure of influence is dictated by how much the person is willing to be influenced. This is an individual’s personal discretion.

I believe that one of the negative effects of these forms of media for me is distraction. Since there is a plethora of information available online, it can sometimes be difficult to sift the ones that really matter from those that can be considered as superficial needs of an individual.

Time is also another thing taken by social media right now. Instead of spending some quiet time with the Lord, I find myself talking to people and friends or checking out all amusing stories and pictures all the time that I forget to have that important time with God.

It also inevitably let myself be surrounded with gossips, unhealthy comparisons, dislike and perversion – things that were mentioned by the Lord in Proverbs 4:24 “Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips.”

Good Side Of Internet

Internet allows me to connect with all great people who follows God. Meeting and listening to sermons of certain Pastors and learning how to study the Bible from different godly women helped and encourage my faith.

I do not have any mentors so being able to listen to them talk online and connect with them online, I kind of form accountability in studying the word of God. It is great to be inspired by these experienced pastors who have been obviously anointed.

At the same time, some of the things that I cannot easily access have now been accessible. I can always read the Bible anywhere because of different apps.

Media and Personal Relationships
Different forms of media are launched to primarily connect with people. The truth is, this web of connection can either harness relationships or break them.

The lack of personal or face-to-face interaction can sometimes lead to misunderstanding. I guess this bit is something that would be hard for media to attain. Although now that I think about it, the emergence of video chatting has now been made possible to bridge that lapse in human to human virtual interaction.

I rarely spend time with social media nowadays and I make it a point to get rid of anything that is detrimental to building my faith. The good thing I gained from it is probably to somehow inspire some people to continue their faith in God.

 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

John 15:4-5

When God said to “remain in him, as I also remain in you”, I believe it means to be faithful to Him. If there is one thing we all need to know about God is that He is faithful even if we are not. What He asks from anyone is to be faithful to Him. Because as long as we do, we will surely bear fruits just like how the branch remains in the vine and become fruitful.

We need to anchor our life to Christ and make Him our vine. We must always see ourselves as one with Him. And we must always open our hearts to Him so that he may be able to supply us our needs as branches need its water and nutrients from the vine.

——————————– PRAYER ———————————-

God the Father, my heart is open for your words and for your wisdom to flow into it. However, there will be times when the world will distract me from You and times when I’ll allow myself to be distracted by worldly desires. I pray that you do not allow me to get so distracted. Always take my hand no matter where I go. Thank you so much for remaining in me and I pray that you help me do the same to You. This is an earnest prayer of my heart, in the name of Jesus your Son. Amen.

Chapter 1: Solitude with God

When I hear the word solitude, I think about a person spending time alone by herself. It maybe in the mountains, the beach, a solitary place, in the church or plainly sitting alone in a bus ride to another city. I also think of someone who spends time meditating or praying in a garden.

Before, I would relate the word “solitude” to something any girl should be scared about. It connotes something negative. As time passed by and experiences gave me wisdom and taught me hard-earned lessons, I realized that solitude is one of the best things you can give to yourself. It unlocks memories you haven’t thought of before, memories you have forgotten and feelings you buried them inside your heart.

Most importantly, solitude allows you to be immersed in the presence of God. This is where I spend time talking to the Lord, asking Him questions, feeling His presence and just sitting there with Him.

Losing Time for God

As things at work and life became busier, it becomes inevitable to lose time for God. There are a lot of reasons for failing to meet with God in my busy days but I guess it all boils down to have forgotten about God and spending more time with the world. What do I mean by this? The world has a way of making you forget what really matters in the end. Or it can also be because I think that God will be able to forgive my inability to communicate with Him on a daily basis.

Getting to Know Enoch’s Fate

In Hebrews 11:5-6, we learned that Enoch just disappear because God has taken him. And he does not even pass through death, he was just taken by God. And the reason he was taken is because God was pleased about his faith on Him.

I also found out that in order for me to please God, there should be faith that He really exists. As stated in Hebrews 11:6,

“anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

How to be Productive – The Jesus Way

“We must slow down and create calm moments. It is in our unhurried moments that we can see and hear clearly.”

It seems like there is an unwritten prescription to a “successful” life in this world. That is, be busy. It is almost as though a life lived peacefully is not successful and productive and only those who scramble to get all things done each day are the ones who are really productive.

But, as mentioned by Pastor Prince, Jesus lived a quiet and unhurried life. But He of all who have ever lived accomplished soo much in so little time in this world.

Funny thing is since the time I started really opening my Bible since I was about 6 years old, I began to feel that God calls me to yearn for His word. It is strange that in all the noises of my life may it be personal or at work, I still find myself in desolate moments. And I found out that desolate moments are signs of hunger for the word of God.

If that moment does not come, how can I intentionally slow down to create quiet moments so I can hear God over the noise of the world?

1. Allot a specific time of my day to the Lord and only Him. Even if it is just 15 minutes. Usually, 10-11pm is the quietest time of my entire day and that is usually the moment I spend time with Him.
2. When outside my house and when travelling, it would be nice to just sit in a peaceful and solitary area, where I can see the beauty He has in front of my eyes. To just sit there and savor the beauty of Earth – the place He created for all of us. As I just take everything in, it would be nice to grab a pen and paper and the Bible.
3. Another thing that I can do to start slowing down my world is to listen to gospel and worship songs. These songs are inadvertently encrypted with God’s voice that seems to call anyone to talk to Him.

It is sometimes hard to allocate time but I realize if I was able to make it a daily habit to spend time working out almost every day for 30-45 minutes, it must be easy too to make it a habit to slow down and spend time with the Lord. Yes? YES.
———————————————————–   PRAYER   ————————————————————-
Father, help me to carve out calm in my day so I can hear from You clearly. I want o be like Enoch, walking closely with You, my King. Amen.