Actually, these suggestion would help on any Message Board. Give them a try.
1. It is OK if your post is a one liner like “I’ll be praying” or “You make a good point”. A poor practice in posting is making one liner statements like “That’s just plumb dumb” or “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard”. All you’ll get out of statements like that is a bad response and most likely a warning from a moderator.
2. Always consider what you’ve written before you press the post button. You may never know what you may have omitted from a sentence that may make what you’re saying totally opposite to what you really wanted to say or meant.
3. If you’re angry with the person you’re posting to, is right now the time to post or would after a bit of reflection be better. If the reason you are angry is personality conflict, maybe posting back to them isn’t the best course of action. Someone may be rough and not even realize it. Maybe asking a Moderator or Admin to talk to them for you or maybe some other person not involved being a mediator will be the way to make peace. Each situation is different and you what may work in one situation may not in another.
4. Try not to wonder far off the beaten path when participating in conversations. Keep the conversation in the area related to the Original Post (OP). If you go down too many rabbit trails with the conversation, you’re doing a dis-service to the one who started the threads original intent. If you want to go down another pathway, start a new thread addressing that rabbit trail.
5. Don’t assume anything if there seems a problem with another poster. Ask them to clarify what they’re saying before you do anything else. You may even send them a private message before you continue on… If you find the poster you have a problem with is just being plain out mean or un-Christian like, Report the post…
These are just a few suggestions to have a peaceful visit to these places.
Pastor Tim Davis is an ordained Baptist Minister, Pastor, and Sheriff’s Chaplain and has been dealing with online ministries for the past twenty years. One of his online ministries includes the PCIM Christian Fellowship Message Board at https://parsonscorner.org/answers/
Great article Chaplain. I also saw that you launched a new article site at http://internetarticles.net. Well done sir!