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Suppose someone took a survey of your closest friends and relatives, asking them which of the following labels best fit you, if the choices were: GOSSIP, BUSYBODY, PRUDENT, WOMAN OF FEW WORDS, or WISE? What do you think their answer would be? How would they label you?
A gossip is a person who likes talking about other people’s private lives, or a person who habitually reveals personal or sensational facts about others. While we often think this only pertains to when we’re talking about something bad, we’re sometimes gossiping when we’re habitually sharing good things about others as if it’s our place to spread all of their good news! A busybody is usually defined as a meddling or prying person, or a person who mixes into other people’s affairs. Someone who’s prudent is marked by being careful and sensible. In other words, someone who uses sound judgment. Someone who uses few words speaks for itself, but they are usually the people who are doing a lot of thinking before they speak! And a wise person does their best to know all the facts before they open their mouths.
I know we’ve all heard it before, but every once in a while, we all (myself included) need reminders of certain things. One of those things is our speech! This post isn’t about using bad language. Instead, it’s a reminder to give some thought to what we are talking about on a regular basis. And this goes for not only talking, but for writing on social media too. It even realms into what we are hearing from others and reading about on social media. Sometimes we need to stop listening, stop reading, or even stop someone else from talking!
I was reminded this week by a couple of different things just how important our words are, whether spoken or written, and just how important it is to be wise in what we say and hear. Not only that, but with the social media being such a big part of our lives, we should all stop and consider whether we should even say anything at all before we respond in a post. In other words, sometimes we might just want to keep our own “two cents” to ourselves!
Someone who knew one of my uncles once told me that he was a “man of few words.” I want to be like more like that! Most of the time, no one needs to hear our opinions, especially if we don’t know everything about the situation! Likewise, we don’t need to hear or read everyone else’s opinions either! The truth is, there’s no reason to get caught up in discussing or thinking about other peoples’ decisions and choices if they have nothing to do with us.
Every tree is known by its fruit. Someday, our words will be judged; even the careless, idle, useless ones. So, let’s be wise!
The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit. ~Proverbs 15:4.
There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. ~ Proverbs 12:18
Don’t put young widows on the list. They may later have a strong desire to get married. Then they will turn away from Christ and become guilty of breaking their promise to him. Besides, they will become lazy and get into the habit of going from house to house. Next, they will start gossiping and become busybodies, talking about things that are none of their business. ~ 1 Timothy 5:11-13
If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of gloryand of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. ~ 1 Peter 4:14-15
