I love all of the communication options that have been made available through technology. I love blogging and using Twitter as I have seen them yield some interesting opportunities that I would not have otherwise gotten. That being said, there are a number of things that technology is insufficient for.

It blows me away the number of adults that I have seen that have tried to have in depth and sometimes difficult conversations via email and text message. I have seen some of these conflicts get incredibly messy and I must say that I am not really surprised.

Even if you are a master wordsmith, you lose so much communication real estate when you are not face to face with someone. A phone conversation is definitely better than a text message and a face to face conversation is better still. An email cannot communicate tone of voice, inflection or mood which leaves way too much up to interpretation. I’m not going to throw anyone under the bus but if you have a serious conversation that needs to be had with someone, have the courage to sit down and talk to them.

One huge mistake is to just let conflicts fester in silence under the guise of keeping the peace but an equally if not more devastating mistake is to attempt to resolve that conflict via text message or email.

If I have a problem with someone that needs to be addressed, I generally don’t waste any time at all. The Bible calls me to and I yearn to live at peace with all people. Life is just so much better that way. Even though it might make my blood pressure shoot up a little bit, I take the plunge and initiate the conversation. I pray ahead of time and think through what I’m going to say but I have the conversation.

There are many things in this life that will not follow us into eternity. Our nicest possessions will fade and our houses will eventually be torn down. People however, will last forever and our relational investments are eternal.

What conversation are you procrastinating on? I promise that you are probably sacrificing more than you realize by not sitting down with that person. Have the difficult conversation and put electronic communication aside when it really counts.