21 years ... That's how long ago I started college. Crazy!

Recently I walked around my alma mater, Missouri State University, on the way home from a Table Rock Lake vacation. It felt energizing and sort of surreal to be back on campus, seeing my dorm from freshmen year, stopping by the bookstore and student union, and posing for a photo at my favorite fountain.

The summer before college, I could. not. wait. to get my .edu email address so I could join "The Facebook." Back then, it was exclusively for college students.

No news feed. No ads or status updates. Not even photo albums. The only thing you could do was write a message on someone's "wall," which was just a blank space with typewriter text.

It was so simple and primitive. More private. A fun way to meet new friends on campus.

Alas, much has changed since then.

I've written before about my wrestle with "the scroll" of social media. I'm afraid our "feeds" are, well, feeding so many issues: comparison, competition, anxiety, rejection, depression. I find my mindset much healthier, my spirit sharper, the less I scroll.

I took an extended break in May and June, realizing my mental health was suffering. As I felt the nudge to step away, this verse came to mind:

Except I heard: Do not conform to the algorithm of this world...

This ever-elusive algorithm controls what content we see for the sole purpose of keeping us engaged and entertained.

Consequently, our feeds are influencing thoughts, shaping imaginations, spinning narratives, creating echo chambers, sucking up precious time, depriving us of true presence, even derailing destiny.

What's the cost to our soul as we consume this perpetual stream of messages and images? Are we refreshed? Have more clarity? Feel closer to God?

Not usually.

Let's consider God's warning through the prophet Jeremiah:

God is confronting the idolatry of his people, who are looking for satisfaction, strength, and life apart from him.

Impossible! But how often do we do the same?

I see social media as a type of broken cistern. A mirage. A mixture of murky vapor-water that creates confusion and distraction.

In the book "Nasharites," Corey Russell mentions how all the chatter on social media "feeds fear, anxiety, worry, anger, and sin. It stifles the spirit of prayer and the spirit of faith necessary for intercession and godly living."

Intercession is largely hidden. Formation in godly living happens intentionally, intimately, incrementally, from the inside out. It's not flashy; it's gritty and grace-filled.

Of course, it's not inherently sinful to participate on social media. It all depends on usage and outcomes.

I do think social media can be leveraged for good and for God, but I'm cautious of overconsumption. I'm concerned that our smartphones give us the illusion of connection but actually fuel isolation.

I'm reminded of the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4. She walked alone to draw water during the heat of noonday. (Little did she know, she had a divine appointment!)

I can't get over Jesus' question to her: "Will you give me a drink?"

I believe Jesus is asking our generation the same question. We're busy surfing and streaming and scrolling, looking for satisfaction and life in leaky cisterns of our own making.

Yet God goes out of his way to come to us in our loneliness and brokenness. And what his question reveals is shocking: When Jesus asks for something, he has a greater exchange in store.

We can exchange our lack for his living water. It's an eternal, limitless source of strength and sustenance. This is the God-spring that's meant to satiate our life.

Ask him today.

As we feed on his promises and words, letting them shape our thinking and speaking and way of living, our life will become a drink offering, overflowing to impact the people around us.

What if we started using social media not as a place to over-indulge or escape but to share the overflow? What if we prioritize creating more than consuming, with the sole goal of refreshing God and others?

I pray we have the wisdom to know when it's time to take a break or set better boundaries so we can prioritize what and who matters most — especially the secret place.

Then we can say and rejoice: "All my fountains are in you." (Psalm 87:7)

Jesus loves being with you. He loves hearing your voice in prayer and worship. Let him fill you fresh with his Spirit. May the spring within you erupt to bring salvation and healing and every good thing. Amen.

Overflowing,

Chelsea

Exciting news! Worthy Words devotional is now available at Anchored Gifts and Books in Omaha (near 114th & Dodge). I signed each copy.

Grab a drink from Stories Coffee (right next door) and then stop by to browse! It's worth visiting.