Social Media platforms like Blogging, Facebook, and Twitter continue to grow and gain in popularity. It’s great to see more and more of the LCBC team joining the conversations that are happening in the online world. These tools are a great way to connect with the community of LCBC Church, people who have similar interests as us, and also those who are in similar roles as us.

Here are a few guidelines and ways to approach interacting on all of these different platforms, and hopefully some tips for you to make the most of them!

• Be You - The first part to using these social spaces well is to be yourself. Start small in your engagement. Set a healthy rhythm. Don't try to use these spaces in ways that don't reflect you well. Have integrity, in the sense that who you are online represents who you are offline. Also, don’t feel as if you need to use every social network that is available. Use those with which you are comfortable.

• Your Front Porch - Your online spaces are like your front porch. Remember the good old days when everyone would sit out and talk to those who went by? Well, that's somewhat what your online space is like. It's more like a front porch than a living room. The point is that these are public spaces, so whatever you put out there most people can see (think: everyone). Even if you delete something it's there for a long, long time. So, be careful with what you put out on your front porch. Be discerning and use discretion.

• 3x - When posting something, think three times about what you are about to type. Here's a quick grid to run things through. How will this affect the communities I’m apart of? How will they respond? Why am I posting this? Remember, you are apart of a community of individuals. Are you building into the community or just adding noise? Another way to look at this is when in doubt, either keep silent or go positive.

• Listen – Always listen before you engage, pretty self-explanatory.  Learn the social cues & unwritten code of conduct. The way Twitter is used is different then the way Facebook is used.

• Small Talk - When engaging people online, engage them like you would in real life. If you were having a conversation with someone you would not dominate the whole conversation and do all the talking. Nor would you ignore someone talking to you. These spaces are meant to help facilitate conversations and bring people together. This is how communities are formed. They are not a substitute for anything, just an extension of who we are as people.

• Interact - Don't be afraid to join the conversation! Interaction is what makes all of this work. At the same time, when it comes to heated topics, be respectful. Speak in love. Don't be judgmental and don't attack. Learn how to speak the truth in love. We are called to live/speak as Jesus did, let's make sure we are representing that well.

• Represent - You are always representing someone or something: your family, your beliefs, and even the place you work. People identify you as a Christian, or more specifically as a Christian affiliated with LCBC, so understand that everything you say will reflect that. So as you engage with people online remember what you say reflects more than just yourself. We represent Christ in all we say and do, both online, and in person. Finally, while you do represent LCBC, you are not the official outlet of news for the organization. So, remember not to break news, but please do share information when it's time to do so.