In light of recent, local and global events I felt compelled to blog a few thoughts. They’re personal opinions…nothing more…that’s the beauty of a blog.

In BC we’ve been overwhelmed with propaganda from all sides over the last two weeks. From the government, from the union, from the media. The reality is there is more than one side to every story and because we’re human our perspectives are always tainted with a little of our emotion rather than 100% truth.

I have opinions and ideas which at this moment I will choose to keep to myself! What I will say is what I chose to share with my 10 year old as he contemplated the job action and asked me who was winning…nobody. The answer plain and simple is that nobody in our current situation is “winning”. In fact at this point we are all losing.

But here is the dilemma I was hit by yesterday. This world has big problems everywhere. We live in a generation of connection. We’re connected to one another, across the globe 24/7. Our minds and eyes are full of the information to be analyzed, critiqued, processed and discussed on a regular basis and we rarely get a rest from it. When I popped onto Facebook yesterday I was assaulted by the sharing, reposting, commenting of a recently released video called Kony 2012. At first I ignored it…I’m a skeptic, when masses choose to share something it feels somehow contrived, forced. I want to discover on my own and not be told how to feel and think. Eventually the sheer number of people commenting and sharing the link caused me to start watching. I only got to watch the first 10 minutes and something unsettled me. I walked away for a meeting but felt sad at what I’d seen. Inexplicably my heart was heavy and I hadn’t even seen the bulk of the video yet. I determined to watch the rest but with a critical eye.

Later in the day I came back to it and watched the rest. I felt two reactions, one was an emotional reaction to the knowledge of the evil that exists in our world and the second was uncertainty. I knew the images I was seeing were truthful and that somehow, people in power continue to use and abuse children because they are small and weak, because they need protection. Uncertainty because the people that “represent” these children are often just as guilty of using and abusing the same children but in a different manner. Often more subtle and difficult to discern the actual motives.

This morning as I awoke with many of these ideas, thoughts, images and emotions swimming in my head I realized that personal evaluation, thoughtful discussion, informed decision-making is key to moving forward. People as a whole are emotional creatures. Even the most logical people are guided by what they feel and their own, internal perception of the “right” reaction.

In a day and age when we are inundated with information from all sides we HAVE to be aware and knowledgeable about how we intake and process said information. We have to be willing to take time, be patient, research and explore the implications of what we’re learning and how we proceed before we simply react.

If you have time and feel so challenged, below are links to two of the major issues I’ve seen dominating social media over the last week. Each has two, opposing views to the same issue. Try to watch/read both sides with a critical eye and make note of the times that you feel a check in your conscience.

http://cherylangst.wordpress.com/2012/02/29/teaching-in-bc-3/
http://www.newsroom.gov.bc.ca/2012/03/key-information-on-bctf-strike.html

http://youtu.be/Y4MnpzG5Sqc
http://justiceinconflict.org/2012/03/07/taking-kony-2012-down-a-notch/

As an aside, I feel that because of my personal faith, there is another element that must be considered. I know that everything I read, watch, hear and think must be viewed through a biblical worldview. I should be on my knees, asking for wisdom, allowing the Holy Spirit to keep my reactions and perspective in balance. I know that in my imperfect being I will likely react wrongly in many ways but it should never affect my desire to continue putting all my perceptions through the lens of scripture. So for those of you who share my beliefs, spend time considering what we are called to. LOVE, is the basic foundation in all we know…for our Saviour, for people and all of creation.