gossip
In the past year and before my life has been greatly affected by harmful gossip. Gossip just plain hurts people. So while many may innocently "dish," "get the goods," or hear "the dirt" on someone, God doesn't take gossip lightly. He says our tongues are set on fire by hell (James 3:6). He commands us not to gossip. For example, Proverbs 4:24 reminds us to keep corrupt talk from our lips. And God doesn't want us listening to gossip, either. Hearing gossip is about as bad as spreading it, since you can't erase the negative words you've heard about a person. Proverbs 26:22 says, "The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man's inmost parts."
A wise and godly friend gave our bible study group the THINK questions to ask before saying something. Is what you're about to say True, Helpful, Informative, Necessary and Kind? If not, it probably should not be verbalized. I try to use this a quick check when making a decision about what I should do or say.
Ask yourself questions based on the Rotary International's Four Way Test: Is what we're saying the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build better relationships? Is the talk beneficial?
Use Philippians 4:8 as a guide: "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
As Beth Moore writes in When Godly People Do Ungodly Things, "Prayer keeps the mouth open before God on the matter, rather than open before others … We have no business gossiping about members of the Body of Christ [or nonbelievers for that matter]. If we would turn the time we spent discussing the other's life into prayer time instead, no telling what would happen to the glory of God."
As I try to focus on what's good to discuss, I remember to put it to the test of Philippians 4:8. And what if there's nothing good to say? Then in the words of our mothers' age-old advice, "If you can't find anything good to say, then say nothing at all!
A wise and godly friend gave our bible study group the THINK questions to ask before saying something. Is what you're about to say True, Helpful, Informative, Necessary and Kind? If not, it probably should not be verbalized. I try to use this a quick check when making a decision about what I should do or say.
Ask yourself questions based on the Rotary International's Four Way Test: Is what we're saying the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build better relationships? Is the talk beneficial?
Use Philippians 4:8 as a guide: "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
As Beth Moore writes in When Godly People Do Ungodly Things, "Prayer keeps the mouth open before God on the matter, rather than open before others … We have no business gossiping about members of the Body of Christ [or nonbelievers for that matter]. If we would turn the time we spent discussing the other's life into prayer time instead, no telling what would happen to the glory of God."
As I try to focus on what's good to discuss, I remember to put it to the test of Philippians 4:8. And what if there's nothing good to say? Then in the words of our mothers' age-old advice, "If you can't find anything good to say, then say nothing at all!
posted by onlyhuman79 at 5:11 PM
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