Let no unwholesome THOUGHT
Posted in integrity, Misti's Posts, words 0 comments
Gossip is a word all Christians recognize as bad. It is also something many Christians struggle with.
First of all, it's everywhere. Magazines at the counters of every store scream headlines-you can't help but look. Most of the major internet home pages contain links to a website devoted to gossip. (And I have found myself there more times than I'd like to mention). Even our daily news programs on television and radio have gossip segments. (My favorite is called 'celebrity crap')
Another problem is that many times it is disguised as something else in our lives. When we share concerns in our Sunday school class, it is easy and fairly common to offer up more information than our Christian friends need to know in order to pray for the situation. Sometimes, we don't recognize that we are disguising our gossip as a 'prayer request'.
I am no saint when it comes to this topic. As you can read from my comments above, I struggle with this subject even now, years after I made an agreement with the Lord to stay away from gossip. Paul writes to the Ephesians: "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, so that it will give grace to those who hear." 4:29. I believe, though I would never presume to change the Bible, that the heart of this issue goes a little something like this: Let no unwholesome thought proceed from your heart.
I have been spending some time recently with Christian friends who embody this concept. Just by looking at them and talking to them, you can tell they harbor no unwholesome thoughts about anyone. On first evaluation of people like this, it can be perceived as naivety. After closer consideration, I have found it refreshing, and quite admirable. With a person like this, there is a level of honesty you don't find anywhere else. There's no guessing if they are thinking something bad about you when they are saying something good. In a friendship with this person, you can relax. Which is how it should be.
I want to challenge all of us to take a good look at our "thought life". The Bible tells us that what comes forth from our mouths is born in our hearts. Whether or not the words are actually spoken, the thoughts are just as poisonous to ourselves as well as our relationships. The basic attitude of Christianity is to see people the way Jesus sees them. That includes ourselves, (self-esteem), our Christian friends (brothers and sisters in Christ), our non-Christian friends (our mission field) and our enemies. We can tame our tongues in public, but unless we allow God to soften our hearts, we will not develop loving relationships, with Him or the people of His creation.
First of all, it's everywhere. Magazines at the counters of every store scream headlines-you can't help but look. Most of the major internet home pages contain links to a website devoted to gossip. (And I have found myself there more times than I'd like to mention). Even our daily news programs on television and radio have gossip segments. (My favorite is called 'celebrity crap')
Another problem is that many times it is disguised as something else in our lives. When we share concerns in our Sunday school class, it is easy and fairly common to offer up more information than our Christian friends need to know in order to pray for the situation. Sometimes, we don't recognize that we are disguising our gossip as a 'prayer request'.
I am no saint when it comes to this topic. As you can read from my comments above, I struggle with this subject even now, years after I made an agreement with the Lord to stay away from gossip. Paul writes to the Ephesians: "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, so that it will give grace to those who hear." 4:29. I believe, though I would never presume to change the Bible, that the heart of this issue goes a little something like this: Let no unwholesome thought proceed from your heart.
I have been spending some time recently with Christian friends who embody this concept. Just by looking at them and talking to them, you can tell they harbor no unwholesome thoughts about anyone. On first evaluation of people like this, it can be perceived as naivety. After closer consideration, I have found it refreshing, and quite admirable. With a person like this, there is a level of honesty you don't find anywhere else. There's no guessing if they are thinking something bad about you when they are saying something good. In a friendship with this person, you can relax. Which is how it should be.
I want to challenge all of us to take a good look at our "thought life". The Bible tells us that what comes forth from our mouths is born in our hearts. Whether or not the words are actually spoken, the thoughts are just as poisonous to ourselves as well as our relationships. The basic attitude of Christianity is to see people the way Jesus sees them. That includes ourselves, (self-esteem), our Christian friends (brothers and sisters in Christ), our non-Christian friends (our mission field) and our enemies. We can tame our tongues in public, but unless we allow God to soften our hearts, we will not develop loving relationships, with Him or the people of His creation.
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