Proverbs 12:21-23

The righteous do not encounter any harm,
but the wicked are filled with calamity.
The Lord abhors a person who lies,
but those who deal truthfully are his delight.
The shrewd person conceals knowledge,
but foolish people publicize folly.

Social media is a good thing. It’s great to be able to connect with friends and family all over the world in one spot. Especially Facebook. You can see pictures, stay up to date with what’s going on in their life and even be there to offer an encouraging word when someone needs it. All that is great. However, there is one downfall. It has a tendency to draw attention to flaws in your character.

What I mean by that is, things that used to be confined to a few people are now out in view of hundreds of not thousands of people. I didn’t used to be a huge ordeal if you misspoke in a conversation. All you had to do was back up and apologize for the miscommunication. Now, if you say something inappropriate, there are hundreds of people who have a chance at seeing it.

Then, there are those really special people who do stupid things and then add stupid sauce to it by going and telling all their friends and family on Facebook all about the stupid thing they did. You’ve heard the news stories of kids who commit a crime and then get on Facebook and brag about it. I wonder if they’re surprised when the cops show up at their door? Even if you delete it the post, chances are a bunch of people saw it and there’s no going back.

And then there are those who get mad and like to use social media as their platform to vent about their work, family or friends. This is a little different as you’re not bragging about a folly. instead, what you’re actually doing is creating a folly in the eye of the public. When you’re upset with someone, handle the matter in private. When you disagree with someone, tell them in private – unless they are asking for a debate on purpose. When someone is talking about their life and it makes you feel like your life is inferior – don’t get online and look for ways to point out flaws in that person.

That person is a fool. You don’t have to feel bad about saying that, that is what they are – this is truth. In fact you might quote Proverbs 12:23 to them the next time they make such a post. Actually, that would be correcting a fool and we’ve already learned that’s just a waste of time and brings you down to his level.

If you want to live righteously, then conceal knowledge. Of course, the person who is living this way probably shouldn’t have any stupid things to brag about. But, you will have times when people share something with you in confidence. The shrewd person conceals that knowledge. They don’t go and tell the world about it, they conceal it.

The righteous live in such a way as to avoid harm, while the wicked are always putting themselves in harms way. They do stupid things, then brag about doing them which brings about more calamity. Speak the truth, live rightly and conceal knowledge. These are things that will get you further in life.