Gossip, Judgement or Discernment?

Growing up in church was very confusing. I heard the phrase “judge not, lest ye be judged” then outside of the church... no I mean right outside of the church people would be gossiping. I heard people say things like. “I knew he was no good, “ or  “I told you to watch out for her!”  What is that?

Are gossiping, judgement and discernment the same thing? There's a fine line between them. They are similar , but not the same. I had a Dr use that term about a medication I needed. One variety made me sick and one helped me get better. They were similar, even in the same “family” but different.

I find it interesting that margarine is said to be one molecule away from plastic.  We would never eat plastic... see it’s interesting.  Do you know that people will not believe a lie unless there is a little bit of truth in it? Think about it.  The first lie... “Didn’t God say...?” “ Well, let me tell you why...” The rest is history.  The Devil twisted what God actually said and made it into a question of Gods reason for keeping the tree “off limits”. Do you ever wonder, why Eve didn't know that God loved her? Why did Eve entertain the thought that God was keeping something from her? No, don’t judge (pun intended) we do it all the time.

People question what they know on a daily basis. Think about it... do you ever question someone’s love for you, wonder about their motives, or even think “what’s in it for them?”  Well if you’re human I’m pretty sure those questions have come to your mind... even in regards to Gods character. If you don’t believe me then why do so many people think that God is out to get them, when He really gave everything up for them. What were His motives? What was His agenda? Is He trying to create a society of admirers? Is He on some sort of “power” trip? Well the Devils thought so.  He actually said, “ I will make myself like God “ and one third of Heaven believed he could do it.

Every lie has a little bit of truth in it. See the Devil was created as the first “worship leader” if you study the scriptures you’ll see that he comes as an angel of light. Well, he used to be one. You can’t fake something you don’t know something about.

On a side note... one of my children could get a perfect grade on a paper written about anything. That child would read enough of the material to get the “gist “ of the story then do what we call “B.S.” through the rest,  Whatever was written was based on the truth. It was just embellished.

Back to the subject. Gossip is repeating something that may or may not be true. It questions the motives of others. Like “ do you know what she did? Well I’ll tell you...she blah, blah, blahed and made so and so do such and such” well, how do you know?  That's judging something without all of the facts.

Judgement is pre determining the outcome of a situation.  Now, think about it. If a person is acting a particular way don’t we jump to the conclusion that they are as they have presented themselves?

Here’s an example. True story. A man was driving down the road and he was swerving from lane to lane and people assumed that he was drunk. Wouldn’t we all? Well it turned out that he was having a heart attack. Someone looked beyond the obvious and saw the cause of the erratic driving and saved his life. He was trying to get the car off the road while having a heart attack. Without all the information people determined that he was a drunk. Wouldn’t we all have done the same thing?

So, what’s the difference? Well judging is predetermining the issue before having all the information. I was talking to someone the other day and she mentioned that people accused her of judging.  Why? Because she had a “feeling” about a situation. If she had been judging she would have determined the  issue without the evidence to back it up. People do it all the time. “If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck..  it must be a duck!” Have you ever heard that saying?  Think about it, if you don’t know much about ducks you could think that a goose was a duck, you might even think that a baby swan was a duck. Well, they have the same features, they make noise and they walk the same way. They are similar, but not the same.

So judging is predetermining the outcome without having all of the facts.   I’m not talking about “Law and Order” judgement or "Gods righteous judgement".. similar but not the same. I’m talking about the kind of judgement where the Bible says, “ Judge not lest he be judged “

Can you see the confusion?  So let’s use my friend as an example. She felt in her heart that something was wrong about a situation... she mentioned it to a close friend, not as a judgement, but as a concern. She did not “decide” she was right based on her "feelings". She waited and watched and gave the person and the situation the benefit of the doubt. We all usually do that at first. But then something happens. We either wait and watch or we decide (or judge). If my friend had gone around to everyone she knew and told them that such and such was going to happen or that a person was bad or something, she would have been judging. Instead, she sensed something was wrong and waited for the outcome. That's called discernment. It's that scratchy feeling you get on the inside when you hear, feel or see something and you just sense that it's not safe.

Let's take a rattle snake. Have you ever seen one? I have. But I didn't know enough about that snake to know it was dangerous until it's natural tendency "its rattle" came out of hiding. It could have been a garden snake or a King Snake  (that eats rattle snakes)....I just didn't know until that snake started to rattle.

So, what's my point? Well, I'm hoping to stir your mind to think before you decide. Wait and see and watch for the evidence before making a predetermined judgement. If something doesn't "feel" right, watch and see. That's why I'm always telling people "If a child says they don't want to be around someone" protect them. They are usually right. Should you dismiss the person completely? No. Should you protect the child and make sure you never leave them alone with said person...absolutely. Just because you can drive doesn't mean I should give you the keys to my car. Hmm...interesting.

All three of these are based upon a truth. Gossip is making an uninformed decision and passing on that information without considering the source or the cost. Judgement is making a partially informed decision and basing the outcome without knowing the "whole story". Discernment is a "feeling" that something just is or isn't right and waiting for the outcome.

Here's a key. If you see a snake, assume it's a rattle snake until you know the difference. Don't go and pick it up or give it a hug....be smart and watch and see. (Not that most people would hug a snake...to each his own)...from a distance. Be wise...don't decide until you have the evidence, but don't put yourself in a situation to get "bitten" by what you perceive is dangerous if you aren't sure.

I hope this helps you today. We all need to question our own perceptions, but don't dismiss them. Just put them aside until you  know all the facts.