Go out onto the Internet!

I was reading this month's letter from Joni & Friends by Joni Eareckson Tada. For those of you who don't know Joni, she became a quadriplegic after a diving accident when she was just in high school. Like virtually all of us, she asked, "How can this be God's will?" When she was first home from the hospital, Steve Estes, took the initiative to come and befriend Joni, and they studied the Bible together. Joni says her in her letter:

As Steve and I talked bout my suffering in the context of Jesus' suffering, I stated to see that while God wasn't happy about my suffering, it was part of His plan. He had something to give me through this wheelchair that was so much more important than walking -- the gift of a more intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.

"Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the city and invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind." - Luke 14:21b, NLT

I know you've heard that verse from me before. I love it because it's so active. Go! it says. Not, "Sit around and wait for someone in need to come to you," or, "If you happen to run into someone in need..."

That's exactly what Steve did for me.

What a wonderful gift!

As I read this, I began to think that while we cannot do a lot of going out "into the streets and alleys" because of our illnesses, we can go out into the Internet. There are a lot of hurting people out there who are chronically ill and struggling with depression because they think God must have rejected them or they wouldn't be hurting like that. God has helped us find help with these issues thru out chat room, and I believe He would have us reach out to others and offer our support. But not many folks know we're around.

So, let's think and pray about how we can go out and find hurting people. We brainstormed the other night:

• If you hang out on a social networking site (facebook.com, myspace.com, etc), put a mention of our site there. On facebook, join our group.
  
• If you participate in discussion groups on the net, especially ones about specific chronic illnesses, add a mention of our site to your signature.
• Sign up for stumbleupon.com or diggit.com and give us a thumbs up.
• If you meet people at the doctor's office or at your church who are lonely or homebound -- or both, let them know about us, too.
• Anyone want to try Second Life? I've heard there is a health area of some kind there -- see the ICI blog for more info. I understand there is porn in that world, though, so be cautious.
  

Then, we need to have courage when someone new comes to the room -- welcome them as a part of our community. Just be wise about what personal information you share because we will, no doubt, get some who just want to make trouble. God willing, they will be few and far between. Trust God in this, too.