With their mouths the godless destroy their neighbors,
but through knowledge the righteous escape.-Proverbs 11:9, NIV
Ever notice how an excuse for acting with cruelty is often couched with the virtue word of “honesty?”
The cheater might talk about just being “brutally honest” where the reality is that they are just “brutal” in the speech, NOT honest. Such is what people say when trying to manage their image.
Sometimes, we need to be direct and share a hard word. I do not think that gives us permission to be brutal or cruel about it.
Kindness and gentleness are fruit of Holy Spirit that ought to flow from a true follower of Christ (see Galatians 5:22-23). The absence of these fruit in one’s speech raises questions about from which kingdom one is operating.
Some of us–hand raised here–are susceptible to allowing some people to speak into our lives during this difficult time that have no business doing so!
Instead of building up, they tear us down with their words. Then, if we still retain enough sense to discard their putrid advice, they take offense and attempt further shaming manipulations. These people need to be cut out of our lives.
