to know & to be known.

As we’ve been collecting devotionals for the upcoming ineed2change.org series, I’ve been amazed at the different stories we’ve read. Stories of healing, hope, reconciliation, redemption. The truth is we all want to be known, however, the risk that goes along with that is often a little scary so we look for less intimidating outlets to share our stories, whether it be social networking such as Facebook and Twitter or our personal blogs. For me personally, I’ve always found writing to be the best outlet for processing my thoughts. I’ve written many a letter to friends pouring out my heart. Marcie Wright probably has a collection from my post-college days. With the rise of text messaging and social networking, the question that continues to be asked is whether or not we’re creating community or inhibiting it? As a 30-something I feel as though I straddle the line a bit. I grew up in a time when cell phones and internet were non-existent. I spent many an hour talking on the telephone that was connected to my bedroom wall and writing notes to friends in class. The only time I ever typed anything was in typing class. Now, I too, am on the social networking bandwagon. I send and receive up to 100 texts a day, check my Facebook religiously, and occasionally share thoughts on my blog as I’m currently doing right now. But the truth is, if given the option I would much rather have a face-to-face conversation with the significant people in my life. In fact, if you’ve known me for any length of time, one of my pet peeves is when people are constantly on their phones when they’re with me. This isn’t the case all the time and I’ve certainly been guilty of it myself, but I tend to think when you’re in someone else’s company you should be fully engaged with that person. But I digress. Regardless of how we communicate, the objective is always the same, to be known by someone, to be assured that we’re not alone in whatever state we may currently be in whether it be sadness, loneliness, fear, or anxiety, to know that we matter to someone else. This is what makes life worthwhile and those hard times in life a little more bearable.