Being Careful

I saw something on Facebook this morning that turned my stomach. It's not something new; I've seen things like it many, many times. Yet, it still makes me angry and upset and sad.

It's when Christians are given a platform, given a podium, given a place of authority, and they go and say something really dumb. My first reaction is usually just, "Ugh. . . ." I shake my head and want to crawl into a closet where Christians don't say and do stupid things and hurt the name of Christ and the message of the Gospel with flippant words.

As much as I want to curl up and hide though, I also want to rush out shouting, "We're not ALL like that! We don't ALL think that way! Don't think that he/she is the representative for all of Christendom!"

Then, I usually get angry and start ranting against whoever did or said the thing. And that's where the biggest problem lies, because that's fueled usually first and foremost by pride. I certainly would never have said something so dumb, something so easy to take out of context, something so easily misunderstood, something that - even if you didn't mean it that way - SOUNDED so awful. I'M smarter than that. I know better. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

In all that thinking, I'm setting myself up for the same kind of fall, the same oversight. In thinking that I will never do something like that, I'm ensuring that I will not be careful of it (I've no reason to be!), and therefore, I will almost undoubtedly do it.

After all that there's the question of do I get involved in this? If you're going to, how do you go about it? You certainly can't argue that he/she did nothing wrong; they messed up - usually they admit that they messed up and have apologized for it by the time I hear about it. So what then? The world isn't going to forgive it; the world is going to hold it up and every time, it's going to return to bite you in the face over and over and over. You are going to be the guy/gal that "said such and such stupid thing" - at least for a while.

It's different (or should be) with family. By family, I'm referring to Christians. Family, they know where you're coming from. They usually know you well enough to know what you MEAN, even if you say it wrong. They don't require you to be ridiculously precise with your words. They're gracious, understanding. They know we all make mistakes; we all say things that come out the wrong way; we all say things that we haven't thought through or that we don't really mean. There's more grace, more breathing room.

Strangers (the world) KNOWS a lot of that, too, but they don't really care. They don't like us, and they're looking for those slip-ups, waiting for them. They like them in everybody; but they like them PARTICULARLY in people who hold themselves to a higher standard. They pounce on every opportunity with those people to say, AHA! Gotcha this time! I caught you breaking your rules! The Psalmist talks about those people - the ones who say, "Aha! Aha!" The prophets also talk about those people and how God will judge them for being pleased when His people stumble, and I believe that if God will judge the people who said, "Aha!" about Israel and Judah falling, that He will judge the people who do the same when Christians stumble.

What's the point of all this? Well, for one, we need to be careful. It could be you and me next time. Two, the bigger the platform we have, the more seriously we need to take it. The more people we influence, the bigger the issue is going to be if/when we mess up. Three, we can't be those people who laugh at the mistakes and mock those who made them. We all make mistakes. If the person doesn't see it, kindly point it out. If they apologize, forgive them. Isn't that what you would want if it were you? It's what I want. If you hear a Christian swear, don't be happy that they slipped. And don't mock them either. Four, be cautious lest you jump to conclusions about what people mean, even if it is what they said. Oftentimes when things like this happen, people are talking to their family, their close-knit group who understand them; and so they talk more freely, less carefully. Yes, we should all be careful; but we shouldn't be so judgmental that we cannot look past words to see the meaning behind them.