Gossip Ruins Relationships

A twisted person spreads rumours;
a whispering gossip ruins good friendships. (Proverbs 16:28 TPT)

Gossip is something we need to watch out for when we’re establishing new relationships.

Why is gossip harmful to relationships?
As the scripture says, gossip can separate the best of friends. Gossip divides relationships, destroys trust, and the pain associated with gossip is felt long after the words are spoken.

Remember, someone who gossips to you about someone will gossip about you also, and gossip separates friendships (Proverbs 16:28). Let’s respect our relationships and not fall into an infectious gossip trap.

In fact, sometimes people will gossip and try to find fault with people who are close to you so that they can come into your inner circle. Set a boundary by letting people know that you won’t tolerate it if they put down the people that are close to you.

While gossiping about other co-workers or friends might seem like an easy way to build a connection with someone; however, this is not a good way to build strong, trusting relationships. In fact, if you know that someone just loves to get into all the juicy gossip going around, be careful about trusting such a person.

When you meet someone new and gossip comes up, try casually diverting the conversation away to a different topic. If that doesn’t work and it keeps coming up, you may need to address the topic directly in a loving manner that clearly communicates your boundaries.

Gossip is not in God’s plan for you. God did not create us to judge one another by pointing out everyone’s imperfections to everyone else. The Bible repeatedly commands us to love one another, treat others as we ourselves would want to be treated. Freedom of speech does not mean that we should have a loose tongue.

Beloved ones, God has called us to live a life of freedom in the Holy Spirit. But don’t view this wonderful freedom as an opportunity to pull down someone. Freedom means that we become so completely free of self-indulgence that we become servants of one another, expressing love in all we do. (Galatians 5:13 TPT)