The trouble with gossip

But everything exposed by the light becomes visible--and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. Ephesians 5:13  

            There is a dessert served in our area named the “sinfully delicious dessert.” I promise you, it is really delicious. It has crescent rolls involved, cream cheese, butter, cinnamon and sugar…need I say more. Yum! The name always took me aback, though. It always left me theologically contemplating over my dessert. Is it so fattening as to become sinful? Should I really eat something and enjoy it titled sinful? Why does its deliciousness exceed goodness so much that we deem it “sinful?” Tell me I’m not the only one who overthinks these things. Obviously, I eventually give up contemplation and dig into my dessert and enjoy the conversation around me.

            On the same note, one of my favorite nail polish brands is called Sinful Colors. I really like it, it lasts longer than regular store polish, it does have great color options available, but sinful? I don’t get it. What makes it sinful?

            Our culture is simply ok with sin. It’s normalized and even in the church we can become numb to the reality that sin is destructive and pervasive. It eats away not only at specific parts of our lives, but our hearts, and the space made by the Spirit for God to reside.

            I think gossip, is like my “sinfully delicious dessert” or my “sinful colors” nail polish. It’s the pretty sin. It’s just so stinking tempting. It makes me feel a little better. It may even bring me “friends” for a moment, willing to swap stories and share heartaches caused by others. I want people to desperately understand my struggle, but I need to be on guard that it doesn’t cause me to sin. Gossip is so tempting in the pastor’s wife world because we feel like we can’t be heard. Sometimes we just want to scream, “Is anyone listening? Did anyone notice I’m here?” and there are people who have wronged us. Most of us have had some kind of hurtful experience in the church, big or small.

            Ephesians 5:13 speaks to revealing sin for what it is. Sin, brought before God, i.e. “God this is so hard for me. This person really hurt me. I’m angry, I’m sad. I’m just so tired…” is now in the light. Exposed, it has no place in my heart, no power over my life. In fact, this verse tells us that the sin exposed is now a light itself, pointing others to mercy and grace. God promises to use our very struggle and turn it into ministry.

            Let’s paint on some new nail polish – “Colors of Amazing Grace”. May our lives and our speech be coated by Him. May my pretty little toes point to the change of Christ in me instead of being sinfully delicious in this world with enough sin already.