Gossip... you have probably been on both ends of it. You've been sitting with friends and hear something about what someone else's child did and can't wait to get your phone out to tell someone else... and then add your two cents in there... and tell it some more. The other end of gossip is the mother who gets the call her child has done something embarrassing or shameful and you fall to your knees and can't believe that you are dealing with this. What will people think of me as a parent? Sure, you stand big and say, "Everyone has to deal with this!", but inside... it hurts.
Either way... gossip... even if it is the truth... hurts. It hurts those involved, it hurts those who hear it, and it hurts those who tell it. How? Of course no one wants to deal with the situation that is at hand... as parents we might want it to go away and pretend it never happened... as children... we might want to go back and redo what we did to be wrong... as friends... we might wish we had never told our secret... Gossip hurts me when I hear it now because I've been on both ends... I am very hesitant to judge now... I know versions of stories change... I know that details are added... and I know that the pain doesn't go away over night. I know that no one is perfect... and I have also learned the hard way that if they aren't talking to you... they are talking about you. Instead of being paranoid about the talk... look into the Bible and find your answers... how to deal with your problem... how to deal with your children... how to deal with your friends... how to deal with your parents. The news people bring to you... whether good or gossip... do something with it.
This week I'd like to focus on angels... and the news they brought us... that feeling you get when you hear the juicy gossip... we should have that feeling about the angels' news as well. The angel Gabriel is mentioned four times in the Bible. He interprets a dream for Daniel and tells him about a vision. A second time mentioned, he gives Daniel insight and direction. The third time is when he appears to Zechariah in the temple and tells him the good news of the coming of John the Baptist. He was also the one who told him he would be silent until the delivery because he doubted. The fourth time Gabriel is mentioned is when he appears to Mary. He tells her "The Lord is with you"... "Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High . The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David and he will reign over Jacob's descendants forever; his kingdom will never end. The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail. " Luke 1:26-38.
Isn't that the best news of all? Isn't that something you should be proud to share? Isn't that something you should text your friends about? Isn't this better than judging someone else's decisions as a parent, as a friend, and as an onlooker to events occurring around you? Imagine going through one day and only hearing about great things... only hearing about good news... only hearing about the wonderful stories which true and don't have "any extra details" to them. As you go through this week... bite your tongue... let the stories you tell and the people you talk about be good things... none of that "I know I shouldn't say this, but..." none of that "Some might think this is gossip but if it's true I'll say it just once"... none of that "Everyone else is talking about it... I need to add my point of view too". Just be quiet this week... if you need to escape from your normal gossip circle... do it! Don't be ashamed... can you imagine what good things could come from angels like Gabriel if you were focused on Him instead of "them and what they did"!
Mary's gossip of being pregnant before she was married turned into a wonderful, almighty situation... I can't help but think that some of the women involved in the "gossiping" back then wish they had kept their mouths shut. Do you need to follow the old adage of "If you can't say something nice and uplifting then be quiet!"? You have a choice... choose to sit quietly and listen for the good news of Him and how He is changing people's lives instead of the gossip! Don't be a fence-sitter in this situation... be bold and be brave!
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