Tithing on Social Media

Can we do it, also, with evangelization?

In thinking of evangelization as a response to God's generosity, we notice some of our stewardship practices are already forms of evangelization, albeit "behind the scenes." There is nothing wrong with that. Good deeds are needed and necessary, but so are our words, and our willingness to stand up for the faith, as the psalmist says, in the presence of all his people. The psalmist encourages us to become more personally invested in telling people about Christ—like Jesus asked the apostles.

Consider the conversations we have online each day. We could add a tithing element to our Facebook status updates and tweets on Twitter, giving 10 percent to the Lord. That means one-in-ten status updates or tweets could be related to God, spirituality, inspiration, prayer, or a link to something church-related.

Something as simply as giving over the first tweet of the day to a #gratefultweet could be another way to evangelize, not to mention setting a good tone for the day. (H/T @MattSwaim.) Some months back I tweeted a series of short selections from St. Francis de Sales' Introduction to the Devout Life as I re-read that classic.

We can join online Facebook pages or websites that communicate religious subject matter, like Patheos, then share what we find inspirational. Or we can invite friends to events at our local churches by posting them on our personal networks.

We can support a local ministry by offering to blog about it or start an online newsletter.

We can be an affirming and encouraging presence in online forums or chats we visit. Or send texts that convey God's love and prayers for people we know.

What might be God asking you to say for the sake of the new evangelization? What return can you make to the Lord for all he has done for you?

The new evangelization will be most effective when we can communicate—person to person—gratitude for God's goodness to us. The economy of the new evangelization will grow as we make deposits in the world around us, drawn from what has been given to us already.