How to Use Social Media for Good

Do not allow this world to mold you in its own image. Instead, be transformed from the inside out by renewing your mind. As a result, you will be able to discern what God wills and whatever God finds good, pleasing, and complete.

Romans 12:2 Voice

Every day, we are bombarded by the world trying to mold us into a certain type of image.

This has always been a challenge for those who are trying to have a relationship with God, but it’s especially difficult in the age of social media. Messages come at us directly and indirectly every time we open an app telling us we need to look a certain way, make a certain amount of money, and be with a certain type of person. 

Social media use increased sharply during the pandemic, especially amongst kids and teens. This has given rise to a generation of young people more heavily influenced by social media than ever before. The concerns about this are probably very clear; what we let influence us the most will determine what kind of people we will become. 

There are plenty of articles written about the dangers of social media, and we believe we should educate ourselves on how social media could be affecting our mental, social, and even physical health. But in this devotional we want to address something different: fighting back against the negative forces of the world with Scriptures, faith, and a strong relationship with God. 

Social media has the potential to connect us to others in ways we never have before, or to drive us deeper into isolation and loneliness. Just like anything else in our lives, we need to decide how we will use it. Will we use it to become more worldly, or will we use it to make a positive impact on the world?

What we want to do in this devotional is provide a few ways we can approach social media from a spiritual lens. The more we turn to God to mold us in his image, the more our mind will be renewed and changed, and we will interact with the world around us in a more healthy, spiritual way. 

With that in mind, here are five practical ways we can engage with social media in a more spiritual and healthy way.

Consume more positive content

Finally, brothers and sisters, fill your minds with beauty and truth. Meditate on whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is good, whatever is virtuous and praiseworthy.

Philippians 4:8 Voice

Being intentional about what we fill our minds with can help us interact with the world in a more loving and healthy way. This means we need to be aware of the type of content we consume. 

Though we can’t live under a rock and avoid when bad things happen in the world, we can consume content that focuses us back on what God’s doing, what we can do to love others, and the many possibilities for good in the world. 

Following accounts that are actively trying to help people, that can provide helpful tools for something you are going through, or that share stories of others doing good in the world is a helpful step in filling our minds with spiritual things. 

There are also plenty of Christian or spiritual accounts we can follow for a boost of the Bible and God in our week! Check out @deepspirituality on Instagram if you want some regular inspiration.

Stay connected even when far away

“You are the light of the world-like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”

Matthew 5:14-16 NLT

O Timothy, protect what was entrusted to you! Walk away from all the godless, empty voices out there, and turn aside from objections and arguments that arise from false knowledge.

1 Timothy 6:20 Voice

It’s incredible and exciting how easily we can connect with people who are on the other side of the country or the world. Whether it’s family members, friends, or even just people who are interested in the same things as us, these connections provide a great opportunity to be a light. 

We can post Scriptures, share spiritual or uplifting content, or even check in with friends and let them know we’re thinking of them with a meme or post that reminds us of them. 

Whatever we do to provide light in an otherwise dark world and be a voice of love in a sea of otherwise empty voices goes a long way.

Think before you post

For then you will be seen as innocent, faultless, and pure children of God, even though you live in the midst of a brutal and perverse culture. For you will appear among them as shining lights in the universe.”

Philippians 2:15 TPT

A way to be a light in the midst of some of the darkness of social media is to think before you post. Not only should we be aware of our digital impact, but we should be examples of kindness and authenticity online. What we put into the world can influence someone’s life for the better. 

We can pause to think about our impact by asking ourselves these questions:

• What does this post show about me?
• How will other people feel when they see it?
• What is the culture of what I see online, and how can I change it for the better?

Set up your screen time

But the fruit produced by the Holy Spirit within you is divine love in all its varied expressions: joy that overflows, peace that subdues, patience that endures, kindness in action, a life full of virtue, faith that prevails, gentleness of heart, and strength of spirit. Never set the law above these qualities, for they are meant to be limitless.

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭5‬:‭22‬-‭23‬ ‭TPT‬‬

The qualities listed in this passage are an overflow of how we spend our time, and more specifically, who we spend our time with. The more we fill up with God and spend time with spiritual friends, the more we will grow in joy, peace, patience, kindness, and more. 

This means we need to be aware of how we spend our time, including our time on social media. Luckily, many phones allow us to check our screen time and even limit certain apps after a certain amount of time. Having the maturity, discipline, and awareness to know what we can handle online is a great way to make the most of the time we do spend on it, without compromising the time we spend with God and friends. 

Learn and admire!

For everyone who listens with an open heart will receive progressively more revelation until he has more than enough. But those who don’t listen with an open, teachable heart, even the understanding that they think they have will be taken from them.

Matthew 13:12 TPT

When our hearts are open and teachable, we will see opportunities to learn in everything we do. Social media can often become a trap where we get caught up in jealousy, envy, and comparing ourselves to others. We may feel bad about ourselves because of what we see online, or we tear others down to make us feel better. 

But if our goal is to learn wherever we go, then social media is a great place to learn from and admire others. 

Is there a topic we wish we knew more about? Or a skill we want to learn? Is there something in our life (like mental or physical health, learning challenges, a need of someone you care about) that we wish we could understand better? 

One practical thing we can do is find creators that we want to learn from or ask people we admire for help! Matthew 13 tells us that the more open and teachable our hearts are, the more understanding we will have. If we replaced all the time we spent competing and comparing with learning and admiring, imagine how much we would grow!

We hope these tips give you some ideas about how to approach social media in a healthy and spiritual way!

 If you can think of any more ways you can engage with social media in a spiritual way, let us know! We are all on the journey together to stay close to God in the midst of the influence of the world around us.