Oh, yeah. Put me at the top of the list. I will be the first to admit I enjoy some juicy gossip. I do! I think it has something to do with wanting to be "in the know", up on all the newest and most current info. I sure want to know what's going on in the office or the neighborhood or the church or the high school or the community. Who wants to be in the dark and feel stupid or awkward in certain situations?
People have always told me confidences because I'm an excellent sponge. I just keep my mouth shut when I'm asked to. Have I spread other whispered tales and innuendos to friends and co-workers? Without question. Call me bad. Call me human.
It's when you have a person in your corner of the planet who is mean, conniving, rude, jealous, manipulative using a secret or a rumor or a lie to advance themselves or get their kicks while hurting someone else that makes me mad. Or sad. Or defensive. Or want to strike back. So that makes two pathetic people, doesn't it?
Have I stepped up and verbally expressed my opinion to deflate a tidbit or two? Absolutely. Have I done it enough? Absolutely not. Gossip is a slick, tricky path. We all know it. We all spread it. We've been personally touched by it. We've used it. We've denied it. We've felt righteous because of it. We've been stung by it. We've been shocked. We've been doubtful. We've ignored it. We've fueled it.
I saw a comedian, Mike Warnke, on television many years ago, doing his schtick. This one-liner has stuck with me because it hit home. I still laugh when I share this: "Christians don't gossip. They share!" Don't you love it? We can rationalize anything!!
We can label it whatever we want, use it however we will. Justify the end by the means. I still listen to it. Hopefully my sharing days, though, have been narrowed to passing on the good news and not the ugly.
No comments:
Post a Comment