Sharing My Heart, Got Me Blocked

I recently wrote a blog about why I need Jesus. In fact, that was the title, of the blog. “Why I Need Jesus”. It wasn’t titled, Why You Need Jesus, or That Guy Needs Jesus, or The Whole World needs Jesus, although those thoughts do cross my mind from time to time; it was simply titled, Why I Need Jesus. It was a first for me. The first time I really opened up on Social Media about the many reasons, I need Jesus, in my life. I explained, it was more than just heaven and hell and salvation, but how Jesus is an integral and crucial part of my everyday life. I posted the blog on Tuesday night and when I got up Wednesday morning to check the stats, it was gone. It was as if I had never even posted it. When I went to my original blogger site, I found the post, clicked share to Facebook, and the message, “this cannot be shared, it has been reported as abusive”, popped up on my screen. I was flabbergasted. I had only shared this blog on my Facebook ministry page and therefore I was perplexed at which one of my followers would report this as abusive. I mean really, if you are choosing to follow my www.facebook.com/amysamuelblog ministry page, then there is a BIG heads up, everything is going to be about God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

I’ve tried hard to not let these types of things bother me, but unfortunately, I have not gotten to a place yet, where I don’t take these things personal. That is another confession first.  I have certainly come a long way, but this deliberate act was so unkind. I mean, I could see, if I was pointing my finger at someone, or if I was pushing my belief on someone who didn’t want to hear it, but this was my personal feeling of what Jesus is to me. Me and only me. If you don’t like it, unfollow me. It takes less effort than reporting something.  I try to be a very respectful Christian. We have certainly gotten a bad rap as being pushy, arrogant and close minded and that is something that I am not, and in my opinion, Christians as a whole, should not be. We are commissioned to love others and that is what I strive to do.

In the midst of all that was happening, or not happening, since my blog had been taken down, I prayed. I was reminded of the scripture that says, we will be persecuted for His Name’s Sake. I cannot think of a better way, to be persecuted, than for my Savior. After all, He did it for us first. That thought lead me to think that this person may have felt some conviction and didn’t like the way it felt. So, I sought direction on how to handle this situation, and since it began with Social Media, to Social Media I went. I openly prayed for this individual and then I posted the report to my personal Facebook page, Twitter, Google Plus, Pinterest and anywhere else I could, and the encouraging responses that I received were overwhelming. I felt so much love, from believers and nonbelievers alike, that I felt lead to share one response, from a non believing friend, that truly inspired me.  I asked his permission to share, and he said yes, it reads as follows:

“Who would do such a thing? I'm a nonbeliever, and behaviour like that embarasses, frustrates and angers me. I hope your followers don't generalise all nonbelievers based on the actions of whomever this goober is, just as I wouldn't generalise all Christians based on the actions of a few.  I mean, I can disagree with your argument, but who on earth would consider that 'abusive'? It's disingenuous and cowardly, not to mention counterproductive. And actually, I can't even disagree with your argument, because you're explaining why you-- not me-- need Jesus. I do not need Jesus to remain selfless, compassionate, and put others before myself, but you're not talking about me in that post, you're talking about you. And I cannot argue against that at all, nor would I want to.

What a goober, whomever that was… “   

I was encouraged, because it gave me hope, hope that two different opinions, can still be respected, by the opposing party. I wish that my “reporter” would have openly disagreed with me or stated their feelings of why they thought it was abusive, instead of just reporting it. I feel like there are so many  misunderstandings in the world today, and because we can hide our identity, behind social media, people have forgotten how to debate respectfully, or agree to disagree when at an impasse. This is one reason, I try to live the life, not preach the life. Now don’t get me wrong, I love to preach, and I will preach when given an opportunity, but I am not going to force you to listen if you don’t want to. I want an audience that is eager to hear the gospel, or to grow in the Word, or to ask questions out of curiosity, not one that is seeking to bash or scrutinize with purpose of hate.

This experience left me wiser. I am taking my new found knowledge and running with it. And what is that you ask? When I share my heart, I understand now, it is exposing it to the world. And when being openly exposed, it is not only exposed to those that like me, but those that dislike me or disagree with me. I understand, in return, darts may be fired, wounds may be inflicted, but hope will abound.  I choose to embrace that hope and I will strive to dodge the darts. An added bonus, more people read this blog, than any other post, within a day of posting.  And out of all of the people that read it, only one person openly rejected it. That is a pretty great ratio, if you ask me.

In closing, I’d like to add, Facebook, read my email, then removed the block, and it has been shared more than anything else I have ever posted.

I want to encourage you, don’t let the little stuff, keep you from accomplishing the big stuff. There will always be stumbling blocks in your path, it is your choice, whether or not, you let them keep you from moving forward. God Bless.