I think I’ve blogged enough about twitter for now (you can find those two posts here and here).  Now for something a little deeper.  That’s right, facebook.

How often do you say ok to friend requests based only on the fact that you have mutual friends?  If you have students at home or are leading them in some capacity, do you think they do the same thing.  Recently a member of my accountability group got into some legal trouble regarding identity on top of what he already turned himself in for and was convicted of.  Needless to say, we did not do a good job of keeping him accountable.  The questions above were posed to me after another guy from our group noticed how many common friends they had that are our students.  It is not my place to judge him, but I know that many of those students have never even met him.  It is quite possible that he and those studenst were just saying yes to all the friend requests that included mutual friends.  The friend counter is like a social status ranking system, so why not say yes to them all.

With facebook being a window into the lives of its users, it’s easy to see how things like identity theft can happen.  Most adults understand how handle themselves online with facebook and beyond.  I think it would be prudent to share that knowledge with the students in our realms of influence.  At the very least they should be encouraged to take a look at their “friends.”  I’m not saying that facebook is a dangerous place, it’s a fun way to stay connected with friend.  I just want to look out for my little brothers and sisters.

PS… please keep my friend and his family in your prayers as this next season will be particularly difficult for them.