I Probably Shouldn't Tell You This, But...
There's a whole litany of things that pastors shouldn't hear - and we self select out of a lot of them. Dirty jokes - or sexual talk in general - we shouldn't really listen to very negative talk and so on. But one kind of talk is hard to avoid, because it masks itself so well.
Gossip.
I hate it. But it comes at me so fast and so well hidden, that sometimes I'm repeating it before I realize it's gossip.
No, really. Here's what I mean.
"Pastor, you really need to pray for Edna***, she's having a really hard time with her husband right now..." and on come the so called details. And, no I might not repeat the details, but I might pass on that we need to pray for Edna. Which might be a surprise to some people.
Especially Edna.
Who is NOT having trouble in her marriage right now, thank you very much, but is now having a problem with her pastor.
So, it's easy. Now, I really try to guard against it. But it happens (and no, this wasn't prompted by anything in my life right now - but by a quick article on sermoncentral that I realized the whole article was really just saying don't listen to gossip...heh) and it's insidious in the church.
It can be a mindset. "Did you hear what happened at the post office the other day?" That can be a teaser line for a juicy bit of gossip. We live in a society of gossip. Our news programs thrive on the mindset. Our lives are built around it in some ways...which is sad.
And it's one thing I really never need to hear.
Facts. Just give me the facts. The truth. And...try not to embellish it this time...
***I don't think I've ever had an Edna in any church that I've served - at least not an Edna I've known personally. So, if there's and Edna that knows me, no, this isn't really about you...
Gossip.
I hate it. But it comes at me so fast and so well hidden, that sometimes I'm repeating it before I realize it's gossip.
No, really. Here's what I mean.
"Pastor, you really need to pray for Edna***, she's having a really hard time with her husband right now..." and on come the so called details. And, no I might not repeat the details, but I might pass on that we need to pray for Edna. Which might be a surprise to some people.
Especially Edna.
Who is NOT having trouble in her marriage right now, thank you very much, but is now having a problem with her pastor.
So, it's easy. Now, I really try to guard against it. But it happens (and no, this wasn't prompted by anything in my life right now - but by a quick article on sermoncentral that I realized the whole article was really just saying don't listen to gossip...heh) and it's insidious in the church.
It can be a mindset. "Did you hear what happened at the post office the other day?" That can be a teaser line for a juicy bit of gossip. We live in a society of gossip. Our news programs thrive on the mindset. Our lives are built around it in some ways...which is sad.
And it's one thing I really never need to hear.
Facts. Just give me the facts. The truth. And...try not to embellish it this time...
***I don't think I've ever had an Edna in any church that I've served - at least not an Edna I've known personally. So, if there's and Edna that knows me, no, this isn't really about you...
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