Gone fishing!

During the week I made the decision to quit Facebook. While I have found it a great way to connect with many people I found that it had started to consume my life. I kept going fishing for likes in a global pond and my life was starting to be shaped by the opinions and posts which fell like an avalanche each day. They would often remind me at moments when I was called to be present to a particular person that I would suddenly become distracted and absent from the real world around me. It is one of the things I observe often on the trains which are a deadly silence or hush which descends upon each carriage as people become absorbed into their screen rather than noticing what is around them. I found that I was dissipated and I was starting to think and feel about what was happening in this artificial environment which demanded instant attention.
In a similar way, we sit on the shores of our world longing for someone to teach about life and what brings meaning to our hearts. This is not by becoming absorbed in activities but rather listening to the one who shows us where we need to fish. This comes not just at times when we expect to encounter Jesus but when he sneaks up on us and overwhelm us with graced moments. He encounters us in a way which transforms our fears into hope-filled anticipation. He calls us to be disciples who preach His Word by our lives. This is by allowing His Life to give us direction which does not focus on our limitations but on His desires for us.
The question that remains with me is how best to remain connected but not enslaved by the medium which sought to help me communicate. There needs to be a freedom which builds rather than destroys life and allows us to proclaim a message which is more than myself.  The main reflection is to discover what brings life and hope to our world and allows us to put out into deep where Jesus is at the centre, not myself.