The fact that some people feel obliged to share some of the most private aspects of their lives with the world via social media is a growing issue. The religious angle is one of the aspects involved. The following tweet highlights this issue:

Is God on twitter? Why do we wake up and thank him for the gift of life with a tweet? What happened to getting down on our knees in prayer?

You can add to that people who use Facebook and BBM status updates the same way.

I don’t know about people from other faiths, but for the Christian, here are the immortal words of Jesus Christ on private prayer:

Matthew 6:6
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Praying on Twitter, Facebook, BBM and other social media platforms doesn’t qualify as praying in secret. It qualifies, as a friend of mine put it, as having a form of religion, but denying the power thereof. It is showmanship. You see, praying in private isn’t half as exciting as picking up our smartphones first thing in the morning to tweet a couple of prayers to Jesus.

I remember back as a University student, none of my room mates knew when I was praying. Seven years on campus (no; that wasn’t from carry-overs; I studied Architecture) and almost none of my room mates ever knew when I did my praying. Some even had to ask, and my response was that they had no need to know. It was none of their business. It was a private matter between myself and the Lord.

Now, Go Pray
I can tell you upfront that someone is likely to show up here and ask, “Are you now asking us not to pray again?” I have had to deal with people whose minds just shut down when their religious piety is threatened. No; I haven’t asked anyone not to pray. You need to pray? We know that you love the Lord, but please kindly pray in private. No-one else needs to know when you pray. No-one.

Source: http://mobility.ng/religious-showmanship-on-twitter-facebook-bbm-and-other-social-media/

An eye opener