" GOSSIP "

How would you feel if you shared some very personal information with someone and it leaked out? In fact the rumor that was going around sounded more like a story or a joke that totally missed it's mark. What we have to realize is that man is thin-skinned in many ways and words can hurt like slap.

I venture to guess that we all have heard that we should not participate in gossip. I'm sure that sometime in your life you may have been surrounded by people who criticize and gossip. I believe that we must be sure of, and very careful of whom we share personal information with. A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid a man who talks too much. Webster defines the word "Gossip" as, (1) A person who habitually reveals personal or sensational facts. (2) Rumor or report of an intimate nature (3) An informal conversation.

Lives have been ruined by gossip and conjecture. The making up or spreading false reports is stringently forbidden by God. Gossip, slander, and false witnessing undermines families, and also neighborhood participation, and also made chaos of the justice system. Gossip can be destructive, and I believe if you want the truth always go to the source.

Why do people gossip? Why do we pass along unsubstantiated information? I suspect that gossip may empower some and can possibly change lives. When we gossip it reveals a flaw in one's character. Even if you don't initiate the lie, you become accountable if you pass it along. Please refrain from circulating rumors, CRUSH THEM.

A "Busybody" is a gossip. Now an idle person who doesn't work ends up filling his or her time with less than helpful activities, like gossip. Rumors and hearsay are tantalizing, exciting to hear, and make us feel like insiders. But they tear people down. If you often find your nose in other people's business, you may be under-employed. Look for a task to do for Christ or for your family, and get to work. Proverbs 25:18 " Like a club and a sword and a sharp arrow is a man who bears false witness against his neighbor." Lying ("False Witness" ) is spiteful. It's effects can be as permanent as those of a stab wound. The very next time you are tempted to pass on a bit of gossip, imagine yourself stabbing the victim of your remarks with a sword. This image may shock you into silence.

Until next time,

Jim