Too much social media? Heed what we heed- Lehi's dream

How much is too much?
I find myself, as a parent, a mother and a member of the LDS church wondering where to draw the line with social media. How much time should I spend? How much is too much or how am I supposed to use social media to #sharegoodness while keeping my mind free from other negative things that seem to accompany it?



There are days that I feel like I am walking a tight rope. I feel too influenced by things I read. My emotions can get charged about situations and topics that I did not know existed just 5 minutes before reading them. Sometimes I will read unkind comments or opinions that will have a poisoning effect on my mind. It will take my focus from my little family and the process of raising kids or distract me from doing other important things.

Relatively new problem
My parents, when they were parenting me as a child didn't have social media. I cannot draw from my childhood like I have with other topics to make conclusions about raising a family and . It is such a new problem that I cannot yet observe what social media has done to other families 10 yrs or 15 yrs down the road.

I can't draw from the scriptures right? The scriptures are hundreds of years old. There is no way that there would be anything about social media consumption in them...or wait...is there?

Actually there is! In my own spiritual wrestle with this subject I came upon a scripture that I have read hundreds of times before. One of which is more about this subject of social media consumption  then anything else I have read.

If you have not read Lehi's dream for a while I invite you to do so and do it with the perspective of social media it's amazing!

The Scriptures and Social Media
In Lehi's dream there are several people even many, many people in a field. Also in this field there is a tree with a path and a rod leading to it. A filthy river and a great and spacial building. There also flows in and through a midst of darkness and we know there are unknown roads. Lehi and Nephi both are among those who are trying to make it to the tree to partake of the fruit that is most sweet and precious above anything else. Most of the people that they observed never make it to the tree. They seem to try to walk the path without holding to the rod, they get blinded by the midst of darkness and wander unknown roads or are drowned in the force of the river. When they make it to the tree one of their greatest obstacles after and possibly before are the people who are pointing fingers of scorn from the building. There are multitudes and multitudes of people in this building which we read doesn't touch the ground and was lifted high above everything else but without foundation.

Great and spacious internet
I can't think of any better comparison of social media and the internet to the great and spacious building. The internet is spacious, very spacious and it is definitely great. It is enormous! Almost beyond my comprehension. Years ago I read about the great and spacious building and the people pointing out and making fun of those partaking of the fruit and I thought, "Yes! I have this made!" Beyond my teenage years I have never cared too much about what people thought about my clothes or my car or my living the gospel but now with this new perspective with the great and spacious building being partly social media it is a little more challenging. Now I am being called intolerant, narrow minded, deceived and fanatical. Ouch. For some reason that hurts more. Before my cause was obviously noble but now Satan has figured out how to hit the noble even the elect with "buzz" words that make them feel less noble. "Women's rights, marriage equality, pro choice" These are important ideas that contain virtues but when used as a weapon against Gods Love and plan instead of according to it they are nothing more than what marketers have been doing for years, spinning ideas in a way that makes them seem less of what they really are and easier to buy into. But as we cling to the word of God and remember the taste of the fruit, the goodness and joy of what the gospel brings to our life we can discern that they are only words and we won't be tricked like so many have by someone's simple use of terms.

Those who partake of the fruit are still vulnerable
One idea that struck me was that there were several people that fought their way through the midst of darkness, passing filthy rivers, clinging to the rod and when they arrived at the tree they readily partook the fruit. But of the group of people that partook of the fruit there are still two groups. And this is where it gets scary-
Those who took the fruit and fell away
Those who took of the fruit and stayed firm

This has always been troubling to me. These people tasted of the Love of God, its sweetness, its value but still some fell away. I wanted to know what was the difference between those who fell away and those who did not.

In searching there is one stark difference between these two groups of people. In this scripture Lehi tells his family that all those who "heeded" the people from the spacious building fell away. He uses strong language here. He didn't say "some" or "a few" or even "many" he says "all" meaning every single one.

This is scary to me. "all"!!!

Heed what we "heed"
So what does it mean to "heed" does it mean to only hear? It is more than hearing. To turn towards, to focus and to think about and to make decisions based upon what we hear. The two groups of people who had already partaken the fruit only had one difference. The one group heeded those in the building. As others were pointing the "finger of scorn" at them the shrunk away from what they knew was good, they were embarrassed and were lost.

We are told by our prophets to be "In the world but not of the world". I just taught a lesson on this in Relief Society from the Joseph Fielding Smith manual and he talks a lot about this. In Lehi's dream the rod of iron, the path, the tree the building they are all in a "field". The field, as Nephi tells us later is the world. Christ also uses the same term of field being representative in his parables for world. So all of them are already in the world. To still be in the world does not mean to head over to the building and put on the fine clothes and make fun of other members of the church. But by simply living day to day we are already in the world. Does it mean for us to move to a deserted island and start our own colony without any interaction with the outside world, no. I believe the Lord has inspired a long line of people before us. In my opinion there is much to do here. I believe, and I want to be clear this is my personal opinion that part of our prosperity is so that we can do family history, temple work and missionary work at this time. To be the salt of the earth and also the leaven. To mix in so completely but to lift everyone higher. We can't do any of these things in isolation.

So back to my question. How do I not heed those in the great and spacious building? How can I be in the group that does not fall away after partaking of the fruit? I have partaken of the fruit already, that is for sure. I have experienced the love of God in my life that is sweet and joyous above anything else. Now how do I mix online and not heed the ideas that seem noble but that I know by a lifetime of experience are not.

Treasure the word of God
When I was younger I had an amazing conversion experience with a scripture. At the time I felt so close to the spirit. The spirit was so strong. I wanted to have that feeling forever! But as I was feeling this way a thought came into my head about my own weakness. I was a teenage girl. How could I possibly stay close to this feeling and to the gospel when so many scholars even people who had seen angels had fallen away. How could I with my life ahead of me not be deceived when I was so unacquainted with the endless philosophies and theologies that existed. I knew what I felt was good, I knew that it was not from me but another amazing yet powerful source. I knew that it was right. What would I do when I became confused with other things. I began to search the scriptures for an answer. What could I do? I turned to a scripture in Joseph Smith Matthew "He who treasureth up my word shall not be decieved." Boom that was it. That was the answer I needed and the answer that would change my life forever. The scripture that held the answers and many answers to come. If I read them daily, clung to them as people did in the vision, hand over hand, "pressing" forward I would not be deceived. The word "treasure" is a stronger word then "heed". Not only do we make decisions based on what we treasure but we return to our treasure again and again. We value it above other things.

So in the question with social media I do not have specifics. I don't know what time constraints we should put on ourselves. What groups and pages to unfollow or to follow. I don't know if there is a good app out there to alert us when we have spent too much time in one place or another but I know there is personal revelation and the guidance of the spirit to help alert us when something is not right. If we put more time into reading the scriptures and and treasuring up other forms of the "word of God" we will have the direction we need to not "heed". To make our decisions based upon what is in the scriptures rather than the opinions of others in posts, status updates, blogs or other media.

There was a great conference talk this past October on "What way do you face." I loved how closely aligned it was with this topic. So I ask myself this week to do one thing "Heed what I Heed." Am I like the group that has just partaken the fruit but now I am turned towards and listening intently to those in the building and making my decisions based on their opinions and use of words or am I turned towards the scriptures, prayer and other forms of the word of God day after day. Still clinging, still pressing forward with steadfastness in Christ treasuring up his word instead of the unsteady and sometimes scorning words of those in social media.