Who, me?

I don't think I'd consider myself a judgmental person, but I was (thankfully) called out on this recently and it stopped me dead in my tracks. Not only was it judging- it was gossiping, and if there's two things I really don't like it for SURE is judging and gossiping. (Shout out to a good friend who called it when she saw it - LOVE THAT!!)

I've been thinking a good deal about this and have come to the conclusion that I've never considered it being judgmental before because I'm super sweet about it. Mmmhmm, sweet like strawberry lemonade on a hot summer day. I say things like, "Her ...*insert annoying personality trait*... is not really my favorite thing about her." Or I spin it like it's my problem and say, "It's a challenge for me to like that about him." Or I twist it into something positive (ha!) by saying, "I'd really like to work on not being like that girl." See what I did there? Pretty smooth, eh? NO! It's awful! Not because I'm suppose to be BFF's with every person I meet but because I am supposed to LOVE every person I meet. It's true! Jesus talks all the time about loving others. ALL others, not just others that I mesh well with.

John 13:34
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another."

John 13:35
"By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

John 15:12
"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."

John 15:17
"These things I command you, so that you will love one another."

Romans 12:10
"Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor."

Oh I love that... outdo one another... I think that's one I need to memorize, and maybe my kids need to too. :-)

Just last week Ben's memory verse was James 3:8, "but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison." Blech... just reading that verse makes me want to rinse with Scope. I do NOT want to be spitting poison at people!

And the thing that so bad about gossip is that it so easily can bring the listener in on the sin too, tempting them to join right in and put that person down along with you. It is easier to just smile and nod in agreement when someone is putting down someone else - however sweetly they may be doing it, than to stop them. That's why I was SO glad when my dear friend stopped and laughed and said the conversation was ridiculous and put an end to it. It was ridiculous! At first I really truly thought I hadn't said anything mean, but then I thought if the person had walked back in the room, say to pick up a coat or something left behind, would I have continued? I think not!

I'm going to be keeping a watchful eye on the words coming out of my mouth and holding them up to the Light of Jesus to see if they are words I'd want to say to him, if not, then I best keep my mouth shut.

So I want to know, are there phrases in your conversations that sugar coat the deadly poison coming from your mouth? What are ways you "... put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth."? (Colossians 3:8)