Follow Me

I started my social media journey in college, flitting in and out of chat rooms, mostly to argue with people about politics and the existence of God. At the time, a quick response could take several minutes to register on my screen. Mostly we were all anonymous screen names, nameless, and faceless on the other end of an internet connection.

Then came MySpace, and my name and face became associated with important details, like what music I liked (and could get to play on my page), my page background, and what games I was into at that time. My new friend Tom led me through the process of finding my friends and connecting with people with similar interests as me.

Facebook changed everything. The like button gave instant feedback on the things I chose to put on the internet. What had been limited to comments and views became an affirmation that I was a cool and/or good person. It was a way to admire from afar; our online world was changed forever.

Instagram took a different approach. While Facebook was a verbal place to tell everyone what you’re thinking or feeling today and interact with your “friends” about what you're thinking and feeling, Instagram is a primarily visual place. Yes, you can comment, but you see the image or video, you heart it or you don’t, and you keep scrolling. It’s a “follow” situation rather than “friend”.

This whole progression of the social media space has conditioned our understanding of following and friendship. If I friend someone online, I get access to their information, but I’m still several steps removed from actually knowing that person in a friendly, relational way. If I follow a band or someone’s Instagram account, I become a fan or a critic from a distance. I knew their faces, sort of. I know some details of where they go or what they eat, but I haven’t moved an inch from my previous position, physically or metaphorically.

This is different from what Jesus meant when He said, “Follow me…”. This is not a sit-back-and-observe-from-afar kind of situation. This is not a fan-from-a-distance mindset.

In fact, Jesus used some pretty intense language to describe what He meant. “Hate your family”, “Count the cost”, and “Give everything up”, isn’t a passive fanship. This is not a click-the-heart and keep-scrolling following.

This is an all-in, passionate, focused on Jesus at the expense of all else, get up and get active, kind of following.

And the relevant question is this: “If Jesus is who He said He is, and did what we read about in the Scriptures, what is that worth to me?”

My answer: “Everything.”

What’s yours?