Are You Catfishing Yourself?

~ Inspired by one of my leaders and Dad ~

To catfish yourself is quite simple. Create a brand on social media e.g. post your support of "Black Lives Matter," talk about attending church every Sunday, take loving selfies with your significant other. Then, troll the internet with your views on a subject you actually have no passion for. Create the cutest caption with your significant other on Insta, #mightbetheone. Next day, pick a fight - why didn't you tell me where you were going, with who, why don't we just break up. Do nothing to change society, help others, or be kind.

Our society puts an enormous amount of pressure to be perfect on social media. With that, many find themselves choosing our words on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter without the actions to back them up. Why use those words if you do not plan on actioning anything? What is the true objective you are looking for on social media?

I'm going to pose the question to you: Are your everyday actions aligning with what your views are? As you read through my encounter the other day, I'd love for you to think about your physical actions versus what you say online.

Saturday, May 16th - I went to the hair salon. I had scheduled an appointment for 5 pm. The front desk attendant said Susy, the hairdresser, would be running about 20-30 minutes behind. Instead of waiting inside, I decided to run errands during that time. About 30 minutes later, I came back to ask them how much longer. By this time it was 5:30, and I had plans for 6 pm that evening. Knowing my hair trim was going to take five minutes, I asked the attendant if there was any way I could get in and out in the next 15 minutes? He ran over the hairstylist, and she agreed. The attendant then turned to this woman patiently waiting in the chair next to me, "Barbara, since you didn't have an appointment scheduled today with Susy, we are going to have to get you cut with Melissa - She's great and you'll be in and out." Barbara responded, "absolutely not. I came here for Susy because I have church early tomorrow morning, like every Sunday, and I need my hair to look perfect." As she sternly said this, she did not even look in my general direction. The fact that I'd been waiting for almost 40 minutes to just have a trim done, now, she was making a scene. My immediate thought was which church do you attend? I will have to call your pastor because obviously the bible lessons are not sticking for you.

Today, I read an email from one of my leaders depicting the words of Dr. Bob Moorehead, former pastor of Seattle’s Overlake Christian Church, from his book 'Words Aptly Spoken.'

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness. We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom. We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

The reason why I shared the story of Barbara and the impatience she portrayed is because we are so quick to act this way in life. Barbara may post on social media her key lessons from church that day and her best Sunday selfie, but, at the end of the day, she acted like every person in that hair salon was beneath her. Our values are not only in our words. Dr. Bob Moorehead explains the paradox we live in - We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We, as a society, need to be better. Allow our actions to speak for us. Be that person you are on social media.

Are your everyday actions aligning with who you say you are? Or are you catfishing yourself?

And always remember, life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by those moments that take our breath away.