Beware of of the twin killers, gossip and flattery

From The Pastor’s Pen – By Brian Horrobin

In the sport of baseball, when a player hits into a double play, the sports announcer may announce this as a ‘twin killing.’

It is disastrous for the team up to bat as it snuffs out a potential rally.

Well, one of the twin killers of relationships is the tandem of gossip and flattery.

Gossip involves saying behind a person’s back what you would never say to their face.

Flattery, on the other hand, involves saying to a person’s face what you would never say behind their back.

Both are destructive and suck the life right out of a relationship.

If you are familiar with the popular reality shows, ‘The Bachelor’ and ‘The Bachelorette’, then you have seen firsthand a whole lot of gossip and flattery.

The Bible warns against both.

Proverbs 20:19 says, “A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid a man who talks too much.”

Ouch!

Then, in Proverbs 26:28 it says, “A lying tongue hates those it hurts, and a flattering mouth works ruin.”

If you noticed, both of these insidious evils run wild when we suffer from diarrhea of the mouth.

That is why Proverbs 10:19 holds such good advice for us.

It says, “When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.”

This may be a tough assignment for some of us, but what if we made a conscious effort this week to ‘ferme la bouche’ when tempted to gossip or flatter and instead speak truthfully or refrain from speaking at all.

We may be hearing a lot of crickets and pin drops out there this week if this catches on!

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