Beat Social MediaSýnishorn

Emptiness is designed to be filled. We see this in nature––all the way down to atomic structures. Each atom naturally possesses a certain number of electrons that whirl around it in what is called an electron cloud. Some have so many that they are separated into different shells within the electron cloud. When atoms react with each other, it involves the atoms sharing or exchanging valence electrons (the ones in the outermost shell).

The maximum and perfect number of valence electrons is eight; every atom wants to have exactly eight electrons in its outer shell. When an atom does, it doesn’t react easily to other atoms. When it lacks one or two, though, it constantly looks for another atom that has the exact number of electrons to fill the empty spots in the shell. (e.g. An atom with six valence electrons will look for an atom with two valence electrons.) The void wants to be filled, and it looks for the perfect number.

People are made up of atoms, and sometimes we act like them, too. We have spaces in us that need to be filled. Unlike with atoms, our voids and empty spaces can be deep inside, hidden from the general public. That is until we turn to the general public to fill them.

This is a common malady among people. So common that it’s talked about over and over in Scripture (Ruth 1:21, Job 15:31). And yet, when we feel those voids, we feel alone and like we are the only ones who struggle with them. To find relief, we seek camaraderie or affirmation from others––often on social media. We turn to a vast, oblivious mass to satisfy our very specific needs.

As this is a devotional, the obvious Sunday-school answer applies: Jesus. He is the only one who knows each void (no matter how deep it runs) and what you need to fill it. The Holy Spirit dwells within the people of God. I like to think He fills the gap we are desperate to fill. He is the perfect valence electron. 

When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, there is no room for a void. God’s glory outshines all darkness (John 1:5). I think His presence also casts out all emptiness. Social media, and whatever affirmation we can glean from it, can never accomplish this. The emptiness inside us was designed to be filled by God and God alone.