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  • Richard Mansel 9:16 am on April 27, 2012 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , gossip, , , , ,   

    Tidbits and Prayer Requests 

    Hello! I hope all of our readers are doing well. I wanted to share a potpourri of thoughts with you this Friday morning. We appreciate you very much.

    • It is a beautiful sunny day in Southeast Georgia. We ask your prayers that we can get some rain. Our drought is nothing like the Southwest has suffered, but we are double digits below normal for three years. It is sad to see so many ponds dry. Also, continue to pray for rain in the Southwest, they desperately need it.
    • I also ask your prayers for me as I continue battling a neurological condition. The pain has been especially bad, lately. I see a new neurologist in two weeks.
    • I read that the Baptists in Kentucky are having a symposium on Calvinism. They say that only one of the speakers is a Five-Point Calvinist. I wish they would figure out that the Baptist doctrine of salvation is Calvinist-Lite and return to the truth of Scripture on how to be saved.

    BTW, here is a shameless plug for my book on how to be saved.

    • On a lighter note, the 17 year-old son of one of my cousins didn’t know who John Wayne was. Moments like these seriously make you feel old. Likewise, I recently realized that in 2014 it will have been 20 years since I finished graduate school at Freed-Hardeman University. Time flies much too quickly.
    • I am listening to the Bible on digital audio. As I write, I am listening to Acts 11.
    • I am privileged to develop a manuscript on John 21 for the Southeast Georgia Lectureship at Richmond Hill. The lectureship is October 27-28. The last chapter of John is a fascinating study and I look forward to taking it apart and finding the treasures there.

    This Sunday morning I will be speaking on James 3:1, “My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.”

    Of this passage, Burton Coffman writes:

    “James did not seek to discourage any who might have been qualified for such work. As Harper suggested, ‘His words were meant to remind us of our responsibilities, rather than to deter us from our duties.’”

    We must not allow this passage to be a path of rationalization to avoid evangelism. We must all become more knowledgeable about Scripture. What thoughts do you have on this verse?

    For your reading:

     

    • J. Randal Matheny 12:57 pm on April 30, 2012 Permalink | Reply

      Enjoyed this. Good quote there, too. Is the lectureship on the book of John? Will there be a book to come out of it?

      • Richard Mansel 1:03 pm on April 30, 2012 Permalink | Reply

        Thank you. The congregation does put together a book of all the manuscripts. This year it will be on the last few chapters of John, looking at the last few days of Christ’s life. I think this will be the 8th or 9th year I’ve spoken there. Looking forward to it.

  • Eugene Adkins 3:03 pm on March 25, 2012 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: gossip, ,   

    Eating Our Own Words 

    In reference to the words we use, James asks his readers a rhetorical question – “Does the fountain send from the same outlet sweet and bitter water?” (James 3:11 BBE)

    When James used the word “bitter” he was describing words that are harsh and used with ill intent. Bitter words destroy unity, morale and trust. One of the quickest ways to destroy unity, morale and trust in the church is with the bitter words of gossip.

    How can we keep from using the bitter words of gossip?

    1)      When you hear about gossip address it.  When you hear someone spreading gossip about someone else ask them if they ever talked to the person that they’re talking about. If not, there’s a very good chance that what they’re saying is wrong! If you hear about someone gossiping about you, especially if it’s a brother or sister in Christ, go ask them about it (Matthew 18:15-17).

    2)      Think about the way it would make you feel if someone were spreading whatever you’re saying about you or your loved ones. Some people have no problem with gossip unless it’s about them…and if that’s the problem we’ve got, then we need to keep the shoe on the other foot.

    3)      If someone tells you something personal, keep it personal! Don’t go around acting like the church “TMZ.”

    4)      Live in a way so when someone says something negative about you, nobody will believe it (1 Thessalonians 5:22). Some Christians love to give “impressions” and then get mad when the “impression” makes its mark.

    5)      Get busy rowing the boat and you won’t have time to rock it! I will always be convinced that if a person is truly interested in making the church a better place to grow, to learn and to help others, then they won’t make messes that they’ll have to clean up.

    When James used the word “sweet” he was talking about using words that bless (vs. 9) and benefit the hearers. The word sweet is translated from the Greek word Glukus pronounced gloo-koos (can you hear glucose in there?). The basic idea is that sweet words are words that refresh and give energy.

    How can we remember to use words that are sweet?

    1)      By being merciful with the way we talk. “Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.” (Colossians 4:6 NKJV) Paul isn’t talking about the kind of salt that goes on wounds and burns. He’s talking about the kind of salt that’s let people know you care.

    2)      By strengthening others with the way we talk. “The lips of the righteous feed many,…” (Proverbs 10:21 NKJV) What would our words do to us if we had to listen to them all of the time? Would they pull the life right out of us, or put the life right in us?

    3)      By complimenting others with the way we talk. “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.” (Proverbs 25:11 NKJV) Do you know what it feels like to be genuinely complemented? Why wouldn’t we want to share a feeling like that?

    We have all made mistakes with the words we use (James 3:8), but the question is are we learning from those mistakes and striving to do better? If we had to eat our words – or rather, when we have to eat them, how are they going to taste? (Matthew 12:36,37) James says we’re going to have to decide what kind of spring we’re going to have, so which will it be?

    If you would like to check out more thoughts on James 3:7-12 (particularly verse 11) then continue reading here at http://keltonburgpreacher.wordpress.com/2012/03/25/how-do-our-words-taste

     

  • Eugene Adkins 6:34 am on March 23, 2012 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: gossip, ,   

    I Heard it Through the Grapevine 

    Sometimes the source of the news from “the grapevine” is sour grapes!

    Let’s be careful in understanding the difference between passing along information and passing along gossip after it reaches our ears.

    Gossip can be such a tempting thing, but if we know it’s gossip, then we should let it die on the vine. Let’s strive today to pass along the Good News instead of the sour stuff.

    “He who goes about talking of others makes secrets public, but the true-hearted man keeps things covered.” (Proverbs 11:13 BEV)

     

    • J. Randal Matheny 7:07 am on March 23, 2012 Permalink | Reply

      Great post, Eugene. What’s the BEV? That’s a new one on me.

      • Eugene Adkins 7:16 am on March 23, 2012 Permalink | Reply

        It’s a translation called the Basic English Version on an older Bible Program I have. The program lets me use two versions at the same time along with a concordance and some other stuff. I keep the BEV and the KJV with strong’s #’s up for my studies. The BEV seems to be a fairly reliable version with a few exceptions in the NT, but the OT is really good, especially in books like Proverbs.

        • Weylan Deaver 8:53 am on March 23, 2012 Permalink

          The BEV is a new one to me, too. My grandfather used the Greek, ASV and KJV, but he enjoyed reading from the Berkeley Version (which is rarely heard of).

        • Eugene Adkins 5:53 pm on March 23, 2012 Permalink

          Hey Weylan, since you and Randal both asked, I decided to try and check out what else I could find out. It seems as if what my Bible program is calling the Basic English Version is called the Bible in Basic English in other places on the Internet.

          Here’s a link – http://www.biblestudytools.com/bbe/

          I guess maybe I should start using BBE although my program uses BEV if I want to be “technically” correct. I thought I would pass this along in case you guys wanted to check it out further.

  • TFRStaff 2:34 pm on April 13, 2011 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: gossip, social pressure,   

    TFR: They Say 

    A philosophical nobleman, a man of the world, had three sentences written on his castle gate. Misunderstood by his neighbors, and shunned by a large part of the community, the three lines on the door naturally bore some reference to that fact.

    When he started to ride out over his estate each morning, he would first rein his horse up in front of the big portal with its prominent lettering, and read aloud:

    They Say!

    What Do They Say?

    Let Them Say!

    And then, with the last word, he would laugh, put spurs to his horse and gallop off.

    It would be a pity if Christians should allow a man of the world to outdo them in the obtainment of victory over the onslaughts of men and devils. Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And lo, the answer that some would be compelled to give would be so representative of nothing, that smiles and laughter would have to come. Somebody had talked about you! But everybody is talked about. Someone has misrepresented you! But who has escaped here. And was not the Lord Himself discussed, slandered, and accused of saying things that He never uttered?

    By B. Carradine

    “Thoughts For Today to Brighten Your Day” by Glenn Hitchcock

     

  • Ron Thomas 5:17 am on February 14, 2011 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: gossip   

    Do Not Sink A Ship 

    There will be many people who speak peaceably, pleasantly, but “lie in wait” to entrap. There are people who, unfortunately, take the conversation and let another know about it – when it should have stayed private. People like this are, almost, entirely useless! They are gossips and the value of their trust is like having a submarine with a screen-door hatch! Speech of this kind ought not to come from the mouth of people who desire to be thought of as decent, and even more so if they call themselves Christian. Are words these words that will build up, strengthen, and give people a reason for substantive hope? It might be a challenge to each of us to check our tongues at the door of our lips. Rather than open the lips and allow the tongue out, let us keep our lips sealed and not sink a ship! RT

     

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