Matthew 6:1
[But] take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
Some passages in Scripture are hard to grasp, the meanings of others seem apparent. This looks like one of the latter. Don't parade your charity before others to build yourself up in their eyes. However, like most of Scripture, if you scratch the surface, there's more truth to discover. Thanks to conversation I had with Abby yesterday, this verse has caused me to reflect a bit on the increased pressure we feel today to live our lives for all to see on social media. The pressure is not just to let others see our giving, but everything we do: what we eat, who we eat with, what we buy, etc. We've become mini-celebrities and have become convinced we have a responsibility to our 'fans' to post. But we don't, really. We don't have to count likes and have an ever-increasing collection of Facebook friends to live our lives well - we just have to live our lives. If you find yourself unable to decide on which inspirational quote to turn into an Instagram graphic today, remember… you're under no obligation to post for your 'followers'. Let's never let our online lives get in the way of what matters: our lives in the real world and how we love others.
