Podcast Episode #439
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Social media can be tricky for pastors and church staff. Who to connect with? Who to ignore? It’s not easy, so today we provide seven tips for navigating Facebook.
Some highlights from today’s episode include:
- Facebook can be dangerous territory for pastors if they aren’t careful.
- It’s not wise for pastors to get into online quarrels with church members on Facebook.
- Remember, the world is watching how we interact online.
- Social media has almost gotten to the point where we expect critics about almost everything posted.
The seven Facebook tips we discuss today are:
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One perspective: keep it limited
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Another perspective: say yes to as many church members as possible
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The person not on Facebook may seem irrelevant
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The risk of posting
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The risk of others posting on your personal page
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Consider the fan page
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Show your humanity without showing too much
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Feedback
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I am becoming more and more convinced that the wisest course of action is for a pastor to stay off Facebook. I deleted my account a little over a year ago when a church member became angry that I jokingly suggested that I was praying for my March Madness team. We have a church Facebook page that I use to post things relating to the church. I thought I would feel left out when I first deleted my page, but I think it greatly helped with my happiness in the ministry.
Sounds like it was a good decision for you, Joseph.
A conservative Democrat, I have used my Facebook page to defend my party which has caused ill feelings with some of my friends who believe Jesus is a Republican while President Trump is the Second Coming. I have come to believe that pastors either should avoid Facebook or be very care what they say or post.
Agreed.
I use Facebook as a ministry, to post encouraging words and messages. However, it has backfired many times from church members. I didn’t like all their posts, or I post a scripture about gossip and then get feedback that I called someone in particular a gossiper. Some folks are ultra sensitive and take everything very personal. I am considering cutting my posting down, but most likely won’t get off facebook it is a good avenue for advertising.
Thanks, Denise.
I would add one more tip for pastors on Facebook: there are always members of your church who never post, but see everything you post, and in a small town, there are friends and relatives of members who never post, but see what you post.
Well said, Tony.
I find Facebook is a wonderful opportunity for prayer. Sometimes people will express personal needs and I will type out a prayer for them. It is also a great opportunity to celebrate a birthday or anniversary and I try to acknowledge those events.
I, generally, avoid dealing with political or controversial issues because social media is reactive by nature and I have yet to see anyone’s mind changed by expressing your views. Even moral issues are hard to just express in words and can lead to misunderstanding. It is better to have conversations about these issues fact to face or at least by phone where you can ask probing questions and listen to the other person.
I often will post clean humor or funny memes to brighten up a person’s day and I try to make it enjoyable. But even in this case, I have to be very careful about what I post.
The big rule of thumb is to wait until you respond to someone’s post especially if it strikes a nerve. As for how I share my faith, I try to do it in a way that is not confrontational but inviting. One time, I posted that if anyone wanted me to pray for them, to private message me and I would pray for them. I got some responses. Other times, I might share something from personal experience and share some scriptural insight that might at least get people thinking about spiritual issues.
Wise steps, Steve.
I have now been off Facebook for over two years and it was one of my better decisions. Because I have a tendency to respond to untruthful post, I deleted my account to save me from myself. I use Twitter and Instagram which has been largely a positive experience. But to be truthful I am on Instagram to make sure I see pictures of my grand babies!
Now I get that fully!
I watched as my church of 24 years was destroyed by a pastor who posted controversial issues and watched them boil as he divided the church! He then deleted the posts and expected everything to return to normal. He defriended several members when they disagreed with him which caused further hurt . He and his wife post pictures of their kids grades and report cards at the private school which besides being inappropriate angers the public school teachers.
As for politics there are two members running for the same public office position and he is actually endorsing one over the other, making several members upset .
Beware of Facebook. It can be a tool of the devil – used to “steal and destroy.”
Due to a foiled attempt to overthrow and take over the church, for a year, a church member and his cohorts harangued the church and pastor, making sure the church did not grow because they were not there. He made sure the pastor could possibly be successful in his ministry.
This person encouraged horrific gossip by saying, “Has anyone heard anything about . . . . ” to get someone else to say things so, when he repeated it and exaggerated it horribly, he would attribute it to the original (anonymous) source. “Someone said. . . . .”
I saw the dangers of Facebook early. Nobody in my household has it.
I have found Facebook to be a place to share fun stuff about church and to advertise stuff coming up in the church, and pictures of grandkids, etc, however, I have found the biggest problem about FB is that when you post, you can show no facial expressions (which often is a vital part of any conversation), nor can you use in-flexion in your voice (another vital element of understanding in a conversation). Case in point: One of my church members, young couple, posted a picture of their brand new Nissan Altima, so in an attempt at humor my response was, “Wow, it looks like you’re in high cotton now I’m surprised you will even speak to us low-lifes anymore!” Oh boy, they didn’t see my smile, or receive my hug, or any such. Because of her misunderstanding, she lashed out saying, she never looks down on anybody as low-lifes. She ended her rant with ,”It is good to finally see someone’s true colors.” In shock, I had to “mend some fences”. So, I decided not to make comments on other posts other than one or two positives words. A Pastor just cannot afford to attempt humor in a social media venue, it can too easily be misunderstood, not to mention it can give Satan a negative tool to use against the church. He doesn’t need our help. Sometimes the intended recipient doesn’t initially feel negative about the post, but others may. It’s a no-win situation. Oh, we have since “made amends”, but it was all unnecessary. Facebook: It can often show the Face you didn’t intend to show, and readers will store it in their Book of memories, sometimes leading to disaster.
Four months ago, I transitioned from a personal account to only having a fan page. It’s been one of the best decisions I’ve made in a long time.
Facebook was stressful to me. The cons were outweighing the pros.
Interestingly, my wife has noticed I’m happier. I’m not nearly as addicted to my iPhone.
Anything in this world can be used for evil, however, an individual can learn to curb their keyboard tongue and use social media for good. If you can’t control yourself, then it is good to get off the medium altogether. I use it for both church and personal as I have family in states far away from me and it is good to keep in contact with them. Something that Pastors can use for theological discussions are to get invited, or join some closed groups on Facebook that are only for “Pastors” where you won’t face the wrath of your congregation because you want to discuss stuff that is often above their heads. The whole point is to be careful and know your limitations.
I was very hurt when my Pastor, who I always supported and admired, blocked me from facebook when we made the decision to leave the church. We were casualties of a church split. The pastor had only been there one year was let go. We ended up following the fired pastor. He began a start up church. He rented another church’s building and had services at 1 pm. After 5 months the afternoon services were interfering with us being with our adult children and grandchildren. We spoke with the pastor and explained our reason for leaving. We had not seen our family in 5 months and felt we could no longer put our family on the back burner. We loved the pastor, but we felt we needed to invest into our family. He said he understood and we are welcome back anytime. I thought we left on good terms. I guess not, because the pastor blocked and unfriended me.