I am seeing an alarming trend on social media where people are using it to chastise others.

I will be watching myself closely in the future to try to be sure no one takes anything I say in that light.

"Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?" (James 4:11-12).

We are all on this journey together and God has a way of pointing out our flaws and making us see our errors, and we all make them.

Don’t make it a matter to be seen by hundreds or even thousands. And a difference in nuances of opinion is not an offense, so please don’t take it as such.

Embrace empathy, commit random acts of kindness, pray for those you feel might be in error that God will show them the error of their ways. And while you are at it, ask God to make you aware of where you could be in error.

Our brain's response to social media falls into the fight or flight responses needed when we are in danger. You are no longer thinking, just acting. Don’t let the Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA) control how you handle others.

"But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!" (Galatians 5:15).

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone" (Matthew 23:23).

Please extend the same compassion and understanding to others that you want to have extended to you.