Social media outlets can be overwhelming. Sometimes I take a scroll through Facebook and just scratch my head. My heart grieves for the amount of lost people out there. Folks having extreme mood swings, to lashing out and to proclaiming they have a million haters and like 3 followers. Folks run the gambit of issues for all of their friends and the world to see. Seeing this it does motivate me to reach people who may be hurting and feel lost and run to Facebook in desperation. I want to reach out to those folks and tell them they don’t have to hurt, they can surrender their lives to God and he changes people for real, that is my testimony.

However, it feels at times I am fighting a losing battle, against people who are caught in between with their faith. The people who post scriptures on Sunday and porn on Monday, the folks who preach a sermon and then turn around and curse people out-publically, the folks who proclaim the salvation of Jesus and turn around and post pictures of open drunkenness and full out debauchery, the folks who snap pictures in their Sunday best in the morning only to gossip about The Real Housewives in the evening….this post is for you. Yes I know I will probably be stepping on many people’s toes with this article but enough is enough! If I can just get only one person in the social media universe to stop posting these “double-life” statuses then that is a win!

The reason I reserved the space on my site to address a not-so-positive subject matter is because it seriously pains me, and the problem goes beyond the person who is doing the “double-life” status. With maturity comes the realization that life is not all about us, it is not all about our stuff, our wants or our plans; the quicker that we realize that the closer we become to understanding our purpose. I bring this up to say that “double-life” social media updates are not just about the person expressing themselves for the moment, but non-believers and people struggling with their own faith who see them and one of two things happens 1) The non-believer discredits anything righteous you have to say; “If they believe in Jesus and their life is ratchet why should I?” 2) The believer who is struggling will say “If this person believes in Jesus and lives like this. So can I.”

In this world we live in there is a greater responsibility and accountability factor for our actions because they become published images and thoughts for the world to see. People have been sent to jail and convicted for murder based off a Facebook update. I understand that we all struggle with sin (so do I), and I don’t write this to judge anyone; TRUST I am fully aware I need to go before God every morning because my heart is a mess. However, with the realization that I am not perfect and that I fall short of glory, I know that I have to allow God to work in my life so my walk matches my talk. Furthermore when I do mess up I feel convicted by the Holy Spirit, I don’t run to social media to glorify my actions, I am praying for God’s grace to cover them.  There is a HUGE difference. 

I have done enough bad things in my life, to not want to have the blood of another believer’s on my hands. I don’t want to cause someone to slip because they saw me professing Jesus one night and living unsavory the next – and its documented and published for the world to see. By only thinking of ourselves and not realizing the call on each of our lives to save someone else engaging in “double-life” status lifestyle it puts the blood on our hands.  

In my ratchet days (evidence is still lingering on Facebook) I was outright scared to post scripture and things related to my faith. I knew I wasn’t living right and if I was going to publically stand for God then I needed to live like I was. Furthermore I was scared of God, I feared his wrath –I knew there were just some things I couldn’t mess with. That absence of the fear of God in our society is why “double-life” status updating is alarming. I truly believe that God has mercy on those who are trying to get their lives together and refrain from publically aligning with God than those who publically align with God and glorify their God-less behavior while causing another believer to stumble. I know the come backs will be “Only God can judge”, “Who are you to talk” …well like I said I know everyone messes up but the moment we snap the picture, edit it, tag our friends and then click send – we have crossed the line of having a little mess up to glorifying the behavior. We can’t serve two masters in life or on Facebook.

I challenge everyone including myself, to live to inspire! To allow Christ to change our hearts for real; to walk like we are a people of influence; to understand that we can be responsible for saving someone or causing them to fall; to understand that life is bigger than our selves; to walk with purpose and fear God; to be accountable for everything we publish and put out into the world. Life isn’t easy, but God wants to ease the burden. If you have ever posted a “double-life” status then be convicted and change. There could be someone waiting to be saved and inspired by your life and your testimony. God Bless.

Need to study this topic? Here are some scriptures:

Romans 14:13, Romans 14:2, 1 Corinthians 8:9, 1 Corinthians 10:32, 1 Corinthians 9:12, 2 Corinthians 6:3, 

 “The best journeys answer questions you never thought to ask”

April 2nd I boarded a flight to San Jose, Costa Rica and then a much smaller flight  to the Nicoya Peninsula followed by an hour in a taxi to playa Hermosa…talk about journey! Arriving at Shaka Surf Camp for my surfing and yoga adventure. The weather there was perfect; the sun just seemed to hug your skin. I was greeted by the yoga instructor Meagan who rocks (you need to check out her Yoga YouTube channel). I was given a tour and keys to my own cabina for the week. My jaw was on the floor when I saw my large accommodations; I sprawled across the bed and screamed “all this for me!”

That afternoon I jumped right in with the other travelers/soon-to-be-amigos and had my first yoga session. My heart was so full of gratitude. I had tears in my eyes thanking God for just being there; I felt so free! After yoga I walked down to the beach and the scene was epic. The beach was flanked by two gigantic green mountains, with hovering palm trees and the sky was a romantic tint of orange. The sand on the beach was like powder, and the water was so warm and gentle. I swam and watched the sunset with tears again in my eyes; my heart was just so full of overwhelming gratitude.

I spent that evening getting to know all the other travelers staying at Shaka over a dinner prepared by the resident chef. It felt as if we were already a big family. The other travelers were from different parts of the United States; some were traveling as a family, another solo and lastly a mother daughter duo. The beauty of playa Hermosa, the abundance of hammocks and delicious food made it easy for all of us to become fast friends.

The first morning out on the board was very exciting. The waves were not as gentle as I remembered them the day before and I felt like a klutz. There was so much to think about: timing, positioning and balance. However, once I stopped being my overly analytical self I was up riding waves. Nothing really compares to the feeling of riding a wave; I felt like a super hero!

I spent the week taking yoga classes, surfing waves, enjoying the beautiful scenery and making new friends. I went to bed early every night and every morning before surf lessons I was awaken by the most beautiful monkeys I had ever seen; the wildlife there was stunning. Breakfast and dinners were provided family style so I really got to know the other travelers.

The highlights of the trip were certainly the unplanned moments. One of the surf instructors took me and another guest on a tour of the peninsula “to see the real Costa Rica,” as he put it. We drove through rivers, skinny dirt roads and met amazing locals. We stopped at several small stores to guzzle cold Cerveza, I even had an encounter with an albino cow! It was so fun to see how other people lived and the hospitable nature of the Costa Rican people. Their lives were just easy going and not because life wasn’t hard but they chose not to sweat the small stuff. The people had so much gratitude and their lives centered on family, good food and the rise of the tide.

“The best journeys answer questions you never thought to ask,” it wasn’t until the last day I understood what this trip had taught me. I realized that while my nature is loving toward people my heart was closed off, and I kept people at a distance. My heart was guarded behind a defense system similar to Fort Knox with a warm, smiley and sugar coated shell. Everything I do is intentional, planned and calculated when it comes to dealing with people. The hurt from my past caused me to keep people an arm’s distance away.

I understood when I began to reflect on the warmth and openness of everyone that I encountered. The willingness of perfect strangers to share stories of their life’s pain, the willingness of strangers to let me into their most intimate family moments and the willingness of strangers to make me realize I was not alone in Costa Rica nor in this world. Only the vulnerability of traveling alone allowed me to have this experience. When it finally hit me I cried (I tear up as I write this). I didn’t want to spend another moment playing chess with people calculating my next move as to stop them from getting to my true treasure… my heart. Scripture says we should guard our hearts but I think I had gotten to a point where the guarding was stifling my growth.

Needless to say this was a trip of a lifetime! I love to travel because it changes you in ways you can’t really measure. Have you ever had a trip that changed your life or changed your outlook of the world? Where would you like to travel to one day? What was your best adventure? Share your thoughts and comments in the section below.