Why exactly do we pray on Face book?

The minute you finish reading this piece, some of you will probably spit fire! I may come across as arrogant and judgmental, but just know I tried to be civilized and understanding, and my sincere apologies to those I’m about to offend, but at some point we all need to speak our minds. And yes feel free to educate my ignorance! ok enough with the preamble now, let's get tucked in.

“Trying to please everyone is one of the quickest routes to entering the madhouse.” One hell of a controversial soul once tweeted.

Cliche and exhausting I know, but we can never deny the truth entwined in it, and so I've decided to tackle this case piece by piece, starting with religion; our brothers and sisters.

But before I say anything, may I ask something? When was the last time you actually prayed in your room, or did the silent prayer without the world having to know about it? Today? Last week? Before Face book? Only you would know. Those who have face book will know what prompted the question (unless your “friends” don’t pray there, and if they don’t, then they sure deserve a medal), the continuous “father I need more of you, or I’m sorry for I have sinned” status updates, and there’s more. Once again, I hope we don’t confuse this with preaching and (or) testimony. Allow me to explain.

A testimony is what God (or whatever higher power you believe in) has done for you, all the wonders and beauty, including your trials just to be where you are today. Something for the world to know what an amazing God he is, so they might consider converting themselves to Christianity. There’s actually more to this than to what I’ve said. And I might not be saying it well, but at least it’s just a snap shot to what I know, just to differentiate the two. You can also click here for more on Testimony (and please be open minded when reading the definition): http://www.thefreedictionary.com/testimony

But let’s not waste time on that. Moving right along; I don’t know how many times I’ve actually set down and tortured my brains trying to understand this. It may appear as cute to some, and important as well, but let’s be honest here, and stop beating around the bush. Now I ask, when you pray on face book, are you still praying to your God, or seeking “likes” from your dearest “friends”? And if it’s a prayer between you and your God/gods, then what are we to do with it unless you want our approval? Can’t you keep it to yourself, and pray to your God and not to the world? Maybe I’m obsolete I don’t know, but I’m well flummoxed here, and yes I’m well aware of the question face book imposes: “what’s on your mind”, and that you post what you like, I know. And again, I won’t deny how amazing some of the prayers are, they are very constructive and informative, and the truth is I love some of them.

But what baffles me here (and which brings me to my point) is what this has done to our minds, that if you don’t post religious updates, you’re being led astray (wherever you are). Believe me, it has happened to me. A certain someone I happen to know gave me a leg after my continuous “general” updates. Fortunately I was kind enough to tell him to kindly go face the wall, but then that’s not the case here. However I couldn’t help but wonder: Should I post to impress? Should I post to maintain my reputation now? Whose rule is it, and why? People often forget that reputation doesn’t necessary determine who you are, your character is who you are, and that is something you should be concerned about, not reputation. And something that your God is concerned about too. I believe I stand correct there.

I’ve seen some people feeling particularly crummy after logging onto the site and scrolling through others' “attractive” chipper status updates. And I don’t know whether to blame the site, or the users, but this has proved to have a special power to make us sadder and lonelier which is actually sad: by showcasing the most witty, joyful, bullet-pointed versions of people's lives, and inviting constant comparisons in which we tend to see ourselves as the losers while some lead perfect lives. If we only wanted to be happy it would be easy; but we want to be happier, and in this case we can say holier than other people. It’s like being in a play, you just make a character. Such hypocrisy! but for how long do we have to keep up with this may I ask? I know we express ourselves in different ways and it is in different ways that the Lord speaks to us, but who are you trying to convince?

“If you’ve spoken to Him, then why would you turn & speak to others? Are they your providers or is YOUR God YOUR provider?” said Pastor Jide from Livewire church on the 12th 08 service! (I'll let you and your mind have a conversation on that one).

If only people could refrain from putting this holier than thou persona on here, especially on Sundays! I keep thinking!

I’d go to dating, but hey let me stop before some of you start taking the batteries out of the sky remote. And anyway, I hate playing Deputy Jesus over people’s lives. Who am I to stop you from telling us about your dreams and what you need God to do in your life, and who you’ve helped where and why? Let me not stop you, go on and bless us with your prayers, and excuse my ignorance. Light and Peace to ALL!

The saint and the little sweet sinner!

Days I watched life from the windows of her womb

Warm and carefree

Blinking in the sunlight

Shining in the star light

And now my being is here

In the middle of the jungle

The depths of reality, but I still fail to see the difference

Unconditional love, yes there is such a thing

Like exclamation marks,

her love stands erect

and I refuse to let well deserved compliments be solitary confined

The words never said, but shown

A year has passed since I wrote you something,

And this time it’s poles apart from the last one

 Maybe because I have grown,

Grown to what you have been moulding since the twilight of the 9th of August 1992

Me your star

You my blessing

Like couples giving extensive thoughts to ways and means

Of pleasing each other

You stood your ground well

My flaws: standing rough here and there

You have filled down the scratches on this side

Planning a bit of that side,

carving a piece,

bending this section slightly

Varnishing, dusting, waxing, polishing

Until at last, you earned joy and beauty

You have given me a sense of freedom mama

Never given things on a silver plata

You have given me its tools

Touching the pulse of my existence,

You have thought me to let it ring

Ringing the bells of my heart with your Tarzan ways

I speak of the continuous mother and daughter fight,

You made me hate you

You made me love you

I have made a remarkable observation of your being MamQocwa

To love, but to never abandon my individuality

To respect, but never allow myself to be boxed in anyone’s unnecessary rigid rules

Self-importance: a prime importance for every woman

To value my inner AND physical beauty

You are the light charting the way forward

By your actions you speak

Your silence so loud it shakes the grounds of my universe

I have observed,

I have learned

Learned not to base my happiness and success on the nod of a head unknown

A head of a stranger,

But my head

Moods,

villains waiting in the wings of every being

A song of every soul,

and none has ever completely conquered this sub-conscious little demon

but you have taught me to bless humanity with a smile

cut windows in my selfishness, and allow the eyes to look out

A verse I carry everyday

And when I walk down on the edge of the dark side

When thunder claps and lightning flashes

In the world of heartbreak drop-byes

where one’s presence is vital,

the hope in your eyes is what I cling to

The light of my shadow

The macrocosm of the whole world

Always the one to draw power from my dead batteries

A contrary to the well-known notion

You always know how to spin my wheels

A sweet curse

The abbreviation of time,

forever found inside your arms.

like a soul shovelling earth on top of a buried box,

the significant aura you exude has finally found a proper place

Like a seam of gold,

Buried in the chambers of the heart

You have it on lock

I love you. I Love me. I am you

And so I have been told

It’s true what they say isn’t it?

A woman’s best friend is her mother

Like a lovely book you bubble on

and because of your existence

I’m certain of God’s existence,

You introduced me to love

Your beauty:  mirrored in everything around you

Your innocence: you preserve it,

You protect it

And you stand up for it

The woman in me, you cure herself induced amnesia

“Let love reign.” Your verse. My verse.

God’s manifestation, yes you are

And I pray that He keeps you safe and happy mama

Happy women’s month MaZikhali

and to ALL women of this society, 

I am moved by you.
Let love win!

I love you