Proverbs 18:8

Let's be real. When I ask the question of who has gossiped about someone you call a friend, don't go looking over your shoulder with that innocent expression that reads, "Well, certainly not me, but let's see who is raising their hands!"

Unfortunately, gossip is one of those sins that proves extremely enticing. We easily say that we just can't help ourselves at times. But the tricky thing about words is that they can hurt. A lot. Take a look at what Proverbs says when it comes to gossip.

Proverbs 18:8 ~ "The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts."

The next time you are about to use your words against someone, think about how those words would taste to the other person. Would it shame them? Impose guilt on them? Accuse them? Before you speak, ask yourself that if you can't say it to their face, do you really want to say it behind their back?

And most importantly, pray. The Spirit wants to guide you, and He fights for you. He is fighting to keep those words from slipping out of your mouth. Allow Him to transform the way you speak so the temptation grows weaker as you grow stronger.
   

Trust: It's not a four-letter word

Shattered glass.

In a split second, a smooth, clear sheet of glass can break into a thousand pieces. The edges that, just a moment ago, were smooth and round to prevent cuts could now slice your skin without a second thought.

So it is with trust.

When created, it provides a clear view of someone. You see them for who they are, smudges and all, yet it's in the smudges that we learn where we need to clean the glass.

But like glass, trust can shatter in a split second. With one word, one action, your grip on the glass slips, and it hits the ground.

Why, then, should we even bother building trust with anyone? People lose their balance all the time, causing the glass to fall from their hands. And so we'd rather just keep our glass tucked inside our jacket where we know it will always remain safe.

The thing about trust, though, is that it's something we all crave to use yet fear to use.

Who can you trust?

In his book "The Search for Significance," Robert S. McGee asks a question along the lines of if you aren't willing to trust God, then who are you willing to trust?

When struggling with trust issues, the first question you need to ask yourself is, "Who do I trust?" If you're placing all your trust in another human or even yourself, then there's problem number one.

We're commanded to trust in the Lord with all our hearts (Proverbs 3:5). When we place all trust in someone besides the Lord, we set ourselves and the other person up for failure, and we'll be sure to walk away with even more trust issues.

Why should we need to trust?

Placing our trust in the Lord does not mean only placing our trust in the Lord. God created us as relational beings, and that means we can dare to trust others.

We all have stories from the moments when our glass shattered. Most of those moments include the sting of cuts as we try to pick up the pieces.

But you know what those moments also include? Someone else coming alongside you to help pick up the pieces. Someone who's hands already have scars on them, scars that go much deeper than the sting of cuts. And He tells us to stand up and keep going.

We are not only commanded to trust the Lord, but we're also told to trust others. 1 Corinthians 13:7  tells us that love always trusts.

Not sometimes. Not when it's easy. Always.

This does not mean we trust every person we come in contact with. We are not commanded to trust all. The person who breaks into your neighbor's house, maybe you shouldn't trust that one. The person who shatters glass everywhere they turn, maybe don't trust that one either.

But we're given the opportunity in this life to be vulnerable with people who walk the same road we walk. There are people who desire to know you, live life with you , love you and trust you. Why would you want to keep them at arms length simply out of the fear that your glass will break?

The Challenge 

Trust isn't something we should stay away from in order to protect us. Don't cringe when you think about trusting people. Don't treat it like a curse word, a word you're trying to keep out of your vocabulary.

Here is my challenge to you: Find at least one person in your life who has given you reason to trust. This person has never given you a reason to not trust, yet you're still holding out as a result of fear.

Take your glass out of your jacket. Trust them with it. You may find them stronger than you thought.

Psalm 116:7-9

Sometimes, you just need to rest in the beauty of all that the Lord has done for you. 

Psalm 116:7-9 ~ "Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you. For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living."

What has God delivered you from today? Whatever it is, find rest in all the good accomplished, all the tears wiped away and all the stumbling corrected. For the Lord has been good to you.