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The following comes from the devotional book “What Now?” by Ashley Akers. To learn more, go to www.whatnowdevo.com.
Social Media Acceptance
Have you ever had a love-hate relationship? That is what social media is for me. I love seeing pictures posted of families and reading the cute things kids say. You know, the happy things.
But I don’t like the negative effects of social media. It can rob you of your time, cause conflicts or start gossip. The big effect, and the one no one wants to admit, is that it can cause you to seek your purpose and worth from other people’s opinions. I loved social media, but in January 2018 I took a sabbatical from it. Not only was it a distraction, it occupied a lot of my time, caused anxiety and developed into spiritual warfare. It wasn’t worth it!
Some seek their identity and worth from social media and don’t realize it. People want to be validated (in their thinking) by venting or accepted by their “selfies” or “Ego portraits”. Non-validation or non-acceptance, fuels depression, jealousy, anger, comparison, insecurities, eating disorders or even suicidal thoughts! We are basing our worth on how many “likes” our filtered picture gets, how many followers we have and how many people agree with us. It is becoming all about numbers—the more we have, the more we must be worth. People are assuming that if we “think” or “feel” a certain way (such as pertaining to our worth) it must be true. But our feelings and emotions do not define truth, God does.
John 14:6a says,
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”
If you start to question your purpose or direction in life, remember that Jesus is the way. When you are being fed lies about your worth, remember that Jesus is the truth. When you question if life is worth living, remember that Jesus is the life. Jesus is everything you will ever need!
Philippians 4:8-9 says,
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
Have you ever heard the phrase, “garbage in, garbage out”? What we fill our minds with will come out in our actions and words. If social media is causing you to “feel” unworthy or insecure, you will start acting on those “feelings.”
God wants us to listen to the truths of His Word, but also practice them. We must counteract the lies with truth, believing and acting on the truth. Acting on truth is rejecting lies. Social media is not an avenue to find acceptance. Jesus is the only way to find true acceptance and love. It does not matter what others think. You will never be cast out or rejected by Him. Seek the way. Seek the truth. Seek the life. Seek Jesus.
Reflection Questions
1. Have you tried to find acceptance through social media? Take an honest evaluation.
2. On a scale from 1 to 10 (10 being the most influence), how important is a social media “like” to you.
3. What lies are you believing from social media? How will you counteract these lies with truth?
Copyright © 2025 by Ashley Akers @ whatnowdevo.com. No part of this article may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from Lifeword.org