Gossip and the Church

Christians don't gossip, they just pray. That's the running joke anyway. I think that God has been constantly revealing the condition of my heart. One thing that I greatly struggle with is gossip. I am rarely the instigator of it all. However, at the smell of first blood, I jump right in. Did you know that so and so did this? Oh yeah, I heard about that.

Here's the strange thing about gossip. Even though by reputation gossip is full of lies, it can be full of truth as well. I used to feel justified talking about people if everything I said was true. Man, person x isn't pulling their weight in this group project. This person's so lazy and unorganized. While everything may be true, the question then lies not in the validity of the statement but in the motives behind it. Why am I talking about this information? Is it even relevant to anything else that's going on? Is it out of love or out of spite?

Back to the original statement: "Christian's don't gossip, they just pray." I, for one, am partly guilty of this as well. Hey, did you hear that person x is going through this? Let's pray for that person! Well, what if person x didn't want his life to be a public display for the church? I don't deny that prayer is a powerful thing as is group prayer but sometimes people just don't want everyone knowing their business. Let's say my intent was genuine and out of love and that I don't struggle with gossip. Suppose I were to share that prayer request with a group of people that struggle with gossip. I'm at fault for leading my brothers and sisters into the temptation to gossip by sharing such information.

Regardless of the way gossip manifests itself, either through random speech or organized prayer, it is still a sin. Like all other sins, it places a separation between us and the God that loves us so dearly. Not only so, but it also places a barrier between us and others in the church and the community. What kind of person is going to want to go to a church in which he is talked about behind his back? What kind of witnesses are we if the world observes our foolish talk?

If any of you catch me gossiping, call me out on it. I would greatly appreciate it as I am continuing to strive to be more like Christ. While these are the convictions upon my heart, I also hope that they are the convictions upon yours as well. The Bible clearly mandates that we ought not to gossip. It would be awesome if you could all join with me in this in fostering a more God-honoring and welcoming community.