FACEBOOK AND INTIMACY
I sometimes take pride at my ability to multi-task, though with age that ability is gradually diminishing. Yet multi-tasking could cause problems in a relationship. My wife gets quite annoyed when I am working at my computer or my phone while she is talking to me. I claim that I can carry on a good conversation while I am doing that, but I know I am not giving her my full attention.
This incomplete attention can be very damaging to little children. If their mothers are always working with their mobile phones while they are caring for their children, the children will miss the richness that comes from a mother’s undivided attention. Considering how serious a problem busyness is to parents today, they should be very careful about adding things which will take them away from giving their full attention to their children and each other.
Having hundreds of friends on Facebook could leave us with less time to nurture deep and intimate relationships we have with those who are closest to us. Proverbs 18:24 may have something significant to tell our digital generation, with its addiction to social media: “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” By having too many friends with whom we can have only superficial relationships we could ruin our relationships with those who are most important to us, like our spouses and our children.