Resolution 9 - Integrity

Transcribed from our YouTube video:
10 Resolutions for the MediaWise.church - Resolution 9 - Integrity

My Twitter troll from 2015 thought he was anonymous. He hid behind a pseudonym, a fake profile picture, and fake courage. He was indeed a genuine keyboard warrior, with a confidence to say whatever he wanted, because no one could ever find him out.

He spewed angry, hateful, things at anyone and everyone. And one day, he picked on me. After weeks of ignoring him, I wondered how difficult it would be to find his true identity. I have a bit of technical know how, maybe I could put that to use?

His twitter account didn’t follow anyone, and no one followed him. And yet, he consistently replied to the same collection of Twitter personas. This was clearly a Twitter account he created specifically for trolling. He had another account, likely with his real name. Was there a way to triangulate the two, to find his true identity?

Yup. A few scripts later, and out of 300 million on Twitter, I had narrowed down the list to only a few possible candidates. Over the course of a few engagements with him, I had also covertly obtained his IP address, and so I knew the city where he lived, and that short list was now reduced to one.

I admit that I was initially elated, exuberant, feeling awfully victorious. I had found my troll, his real name, his profile picture, even his Facebook account. He had recently married his high school sweetheart. He was soon to be a father. 

But then I saw something that made my heart sink. He was a Christian. Or at least he claimed to be. A camp counsellor, a youth group leader. Could be any young man, in any church pew, on any given Sunday. Maybe someone you know? Maybe he’s you?

That day, God planted the MediaWise.church project in my heart. Not consciously. But it hit a nerve that has been reverberating ever since. A deep sadness over the hypocrisy, over this duplicitous lifestyle, over the repressed anger and hate that this fake twitter account appeared to be an outlet for, over the awful testimony for Christ, and the implications of this all in his real life, with a real wife, with a real family, in a real Church.

Jesus’ words ever more prescient, “For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.” Luke 8:17

The person you are in secret, is the person you are. It’s as simple as that. The proof of your character is revealed not by the things you do when everyone is looking, but in what you do when you think no one is looking. The things you say in a direct message. The words you use from that anonymous account. The content you consume in privacy mode, or over a VPN.

This is the principle that Jesus instils in his disciples when he says “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.” Luke 16:10 Whether you have 10 followers or 10 million followers, words matter.

This is a call to Integrity, to walking straight, to being true to our convictions. It’s not something that can be faked, it’s a byproduct of the work of God in your heart. 

For we know it’s what “what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” Matthew 15:11. Our words expose our hearts, either integrous or defiled. Would the contents of your Facebook Messenger, exposed by a hacker reveal integrity? How about your browsing history, captured and logged by your internet service provider? What story does that tell?

To make Solomon a glad father he implores his son “Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.” Proverbs 10:9 The proof of integrity is not seen today, it’s always tomorrow. Always the day we don’t have, but the day that is soon to be. And tomorrow is unavoidable. A crooked path only leads to all the wrong places, and when you get there, there’s no hiding the path you took, because at that point, it’s irrelevant. It’s too late, you’re in the wrong place and there’s no hiding that.

So yes, look carefully then to how you tweet. But this is also a call to integrity with our time. Paul reminds us to “Look carefully then to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:15-16 

The time spent on social media, must be walked in wisdom, redeeming the time, looking not to simply avoid being a bad testimony, but being a model of integrity with the truth, with our words, with the relationships in our sphere of influence. Our followers, as few as there may be, are to be lead with integrity.

The commitment of the MediaWise.chuch is to “a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behaviour in Christ may be put to shame.” 1 Peter 3:16 That is to say, to not give any ammunition to the criticism of men, to bear the name of Christ with honour, and shine brightly with integrity.