DIRECTOR'S BLOG

Dr. Sam Martin

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.” Isa. 55 v 8

Facebook? To be honest I am not 100% comfortable with social media. I am aware of the tremendous potential of FB and aware of the dangers. Let me begin by sharing some basic information about FB:

1. Facebook is a social networking site that makes it easy for you to connect and share with family and friends online. Originally designed for college students, Facebook was created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg while he was enrolled at Harvard University. By 2006, anyone over the age of 13 with a valid email address could join Facebook. Today, Facebook is the world's largest social network.
2. Nearly 57 percent of the population of the United States uses Facebook, and it is estimated that 1 in every 13 people in the world have a Facebook account. The average Facebook user has about 130 “friends” on Facebook. About 62 percent of people rely on Facebook for their daily news. In a typical hour, about 3 million links are shared, 6 million “friend” requests are accepted, and about 9 million messages are sent! More than 350 million people actively access Facebook via their mobile phones and more than 80 percent of Facebook users live outside of the United States. The average user is connected to about 80 community pages, groups and events, and about half a million new profiles are made every day.
3. Did you know that according to Statista, 53% of U.S residents use Facebook several times a day? On average, users access Facebook eight times per day. I'm not surprised. Are you?

Now let me share a story told by Jeff Strite, Pastor of the Church of Christ in Logansport, Indiana

‘On the way home from church a little girl who said, “Mom, I’ve been thinking.” The mother said, “Oh! About what?” The girl replied, “Well, my teacher this morning said God is bigger than we are. Is that true?”

“Yes, that’s true,” the mother replied. “He also said that God lives within us. Is that true too?”

Again, the mother replied, “Yes.” “Well,” said the girl. “If God is bigger than us and He lives in us, wouldn’t He show through?”

Here is a basic principle of life. Whatever is most important to you - whatever is “biggest” in your life – will shine through.

And on Facebook this especially becomes true. Who a person is will shine through. Because whatever is BIGGEST in their lives – shows.

You can tell what is important in a person’s life on Facebook by what…

1. they talk about the most
2. and what they say they “like “
3. and what kind of photos they “share”

One of the most common aspects of Facebooking is this “Sharing” feature.

People on Facebook share photos like these:

1. Humorous (put up humorous postings on the overhead)

2. Political (political photos)

3. Affection or Love (affection related postings on Facebook)

4. Patriotic (patriotic photo)

You can tell a lot about what a person is like by what they share on Facebook’

Last week, on the Mission FB page, a story was shared about a child who needed to be sponsored and it basically stated:

URGENT NEED

Due to unforeseen circumstances the sponsor of Mercy de los Angeles has not been able to continue with sponsorship payments. Mercy wishes to continue her education at AOJ Guatemala. We are in need of someone to continue the sponsorship of her so she can remain attending school at AOJ, etc.

Mercy will turn 9 years old on July 29 and is a very kind, happy and respectful girl. She is in 2nd grade at the AOJ School Guatemala and every morning she is anxious to get to school to continue learning what her teacher teaches every day. She is very responsible in her studies and also very sociable with her classmates.

I was amazed to learn from Edith who very carefully and professionally manages our FB page, that within a short period of time there had been 3,600 hits, visits to the page, and 29 people had then shared it on their FB. Amazing! And so many offers to help and questions about other children possibly in the same situation. And as I write I am happy that Mercy is back in the sponsorship family.

The Mission posting clearly indicated that we care about children, children needed help, and the tremendous response a witness to the good, kind-hearted people who also want to make a difference in the world. As I thought about the response, I remembered the words in Isaiah 55: “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.”

By the way, we do have many children awaiting sponsorship, that is to enter this life changing ministry program, and we have children who need help because their sponsors for various reasons has had to cancel or drop their sponsorship. Visit our WEB site page, our FB page or call the office at 905.492.5007 for full information.

Thanks for letting me share!