Hi Everyone!! Breanna and I would like to put a challenge out there for all of y'all (and us). We have heard a lot about gossip lately and know just how hurtful it can be. We were thinking that we should have a challenge not to gossip for a week (we really should work up to not gossiping at all, but nobody's perfect and I'm not even sure if I can go a whole week). This is something that we need to ask God to help us with; we can't do anything on our own. I will be praying this week that God will help me to not gossip. If you slip up, that's OK! As I said before, nobody's perfect. Just keep asking God to help you not to, and eventually, it will become a habit.
A lot of the time, the reason we gossip is because of peer pressure. Even if we were resolved not to in the beginning, our friends will start and then we get pulled into it. They say something about someone, and we can't resist sharing that juicy tidbit of information we know about that person. A good way to test whether you're gossiping or not is to ask yourself if you'd say what you're saying about that person, to them. If you would, you're fine! If you wouldn't, you need to not say it. A verse that has really impacted my life is Ephesians 4:29: Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. This verse was a great revelation for me, because even though I knew not to gossip, this kind of explained why. What we say should edify, or build up the people we are talking to and about.
I found that this post was very easy for me to write, because this is something that I have really struggled with, and therefore heard a lot about. I feel like this is a very important issue, because we could be spending our time doing and saying much better things than gossiping. I hope this post really encourages you and helps you! Breanna and I would love to hear your thoughts on the subject and how you did with the challenge!! We'll post in a week to share our experiences with you!!
Showing posts with label Words. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Words. Show all posts
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Actions and Words
Note: My thoughts are WAY jumbled up in this post so I hope you can understand it and that it helps you!
As I was riding in the car a few days ago, I saw a church sign that said "Preach the gospel always; and when necessary, use words." Then a couple days later, I saw another sign that said "Show your faith by your actions as well as your words." These signs reminded me of a song I used to sing in children's choir when I was little. It's called Hippocritter. It goes: Your walk talks and your talk talks, but your walk talks louder than your talk talks. You cannot hide what's inside, it's sure to come out, your words may whisper but your actions SHOUT!" All these things just reminded me that even if we say the right things, our actions are truly the greatest testimony of our faith. We must proclaim to others our faith in Christ, by acting in a way that pleases Him. If we say that we are Christians, our actions must match up with that. We must show others what our faith is all about. We must show them that we are different. Christ has saved and changed us and we will now live for Him.
This post has taken me a while to write (like 3 days), because this is something that I struggle with a lot. It's so easy to just say what we know people want to hear, but not follow it up with the actions that we know are right. We say one thing, but then turn around and do the exact opposite. We need to pray and ask the Lord to help us do the right things. He is the only One who can change us. Being a Christian isn't just about us accepting Christ's free gift of salvation. We must continue to live for Him every day. Every day is a new beginning and we can live for Christ no matter how badly we messed up the day before. If we ask Him to help and change us, He can. He will help us to witness to others through our words AND actions. What we say, how we act, what we wear, all of these things decide what a person's impression of us is. I've heard that when a person sees you for the first time, they form their opinion of you within the first 30 seconds of meeting you. I don't think that you can say much more than "Hello" in that much time, so the main deciding factors are your actions and attitude. I will definitely be praying this week and asking God to help me be a good example to others through my actions and words!
Note: Today (June 23rd) I saw another sign that said, "Preach the gospel always; open your mouth when necessary. I think maybe the Lord's trying to teach me something!! Three signs in completely different towns that say almost the exact same thing:)
As I was riding in the car a few days ago, I saw a church sign that said "Preach the gospel always; and when necessary, use words." Then a couple days later, I saw another sign that said "Show your faith by your actions as well as your words." These signs reminded me of a song I used to sing in children's choir when I was little. It's called Hippocritter. It goes: Your walk talks and your talk talks, but your walk talks louder than your talk talks. You cannot hide what's inside, it's sure to come out, your words may whisper but your actions SHOUT!" All these things just reminded me that even if we say the right things, our actions are truly the greatest testimony of our faith. We must proclaim to others our faith in Christ, by acting in a way that pleases Him. If we say that we are Christians, our actions must match up with that. We must show others what our faith is all about. We must show them that we are different. Christ has saved and changed us and we will now live for Him.
This post has taken me a while to write (like 3 days), because this is something that I struggle with a lot. It's so easy to just say what we know people want to hear, but not follow it up with the actions that we know are right. We say one thing, but then turn around and do the exact opposite. We need to pray and ask the Lord to help us do the right things. He is the only One who can change us. Being a Christian isn't just about us accepting Christ's free gift of salvation. We must continue to live for Him every day. Every day is a new beginning and we can live for Christ no matter how badly we messed up the day before. If we ask Him to help and change us, He can. He will help us to witness to others through our words AND actions. What we say, how we act, what we wear, all of these things decide what a person's impression of us is. I've heard that when a person sees you for the first time, they form their opinion of you within the first 30 seconds of meeting you. I don't think that you can say much more than "Hello" in that much time, so the main deciding factors are your actions and attitude. I will definitely be praying this week and asking God to help me be a good example to others through my actions and words!
Note: Today (June 23rd) I saw another sign that said, "Preach the gospel always; open your mouth when necessary. I think maybe the Lord's trying to teach me something!! Three signs in completely different towns that say almost the exact same thing:)
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