500 Million Stories

I started reading "The Facebook Effect" tonight and I am looking forward to engaging the story of Facebook.

I clearly remember being invited to join Facebook in late 2006 while I was at Princeton Theological Seminary. I recall how impressed I was by the simplicity of the user interface and the consistency of the experience. I did not feel lost in a jungle like I did when I clicked into myspace.

Since then, I have maintained a fairly consistent interaction with Facebook. I have gone through the oft-repeated ups and downs of engagement but I always have returned. I still have not located the "best" use of Facebook for churches and that will be an ongoing project. I am convinced that Facebook can network individuals in the body of Christ to engage our culture with the love of Christ in a way that goes beyond being another announcement mechanism for over-programmed churches.

I have yet to see anyone do this effectively however...

I located Mark Zuckerberg's page and I read his self-description, "I'm trying to make the world a more open place by helping people connect and share."

I was struck by the simplicity of his "mission statement." I should seek the same simplicity in my life and go after it. That is a subject for another day.

Until then, I am going to keep reading this book on Facebook and see if I encounter any new revelations about the platform/application/phenomenon that has captured the attention of 500 million users and stories in the world.