QUESTION #8

Have we been gossiping about people? Do we slander the character of others? Are we talebearers and busybodies?

With social media at our finger tips these days, we can know a lot of details about a lot of people. On any given day I see posts from people in at about 4 different countries and probably 15 different states. This amount of social interaction is great for someone like me who loves people and cares about life details like my friends’ babies, weather pics, and life adventures. I would say however that while all of this social access has it’s benefits, there are disadvantages as well. One disadvantage is that because this interaction only gives us glimpses of someone’s life, we’re left to draw conclusions on our own.

You probably know the saying that it’s easy to judge a book by it’s cover. It’s true, because until I open the book and read it all the way through, the only judgement I have to go on is the cover. Often, all we see of people is “the cover” and we can only remark based on our perception of reality. Our life experiences and choices gives us a filter, whether good or bad for which we see things. The problem with this is that no matter how “good” our perspective might be, nobody truly knows what anyone else is going through. I know of people with autoimmune diseases who will have horrible pains and be down and out for days and then seemingly fine a few days later. This is very confusing to their friends and even family and leaves them wounded by other’s remarks at times. There are men and women who serve in occupations like the military or in the police force who see gruesome events and defend us in ways most of us could never comprehend. The reality is that everyone needs love, grace, and forgiveness. No one needs or deserves to be gossiped about and have their character trashed because of other’s assumptions.

While we may love “poking” around on Facebook and clicking the little heart icon on Instagram, we need to realize these are the momentary pieces that people are letting us see. Let us love them, believe the best, and edify them with our words by spending time in pray verses gossip.

APPLICATION:
1. A great way to vent about how you feel is to PRAY to God and Him alone. That being said, who can you pray for today?
2. Are there people in your life who continually gossip or get into everyone’s business all the time? If so, how can you make boundaries to distance yourself from these conversations or redirect conversation?

SCRIPTURES:

Proverbs 16:28 – A perverse man spreads strife, And a slanderer separates intimate friends.

Proverbs 11:13 – He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets, But he who is trustworthy conceals a matter.

Ephesians 4:29 – Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may give grace to those who hear.