Don’t Let Gossip Destroy Your Relationships

By Rick Warren

“A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret” (Proverbs 11:13 NIV).

We tend to think of gossip as one of those “little” sins. But when God talks about gossip, he puts it on the list with things like sexual immorality and murder. Why? Because it is so destructive to relationships. Gossip can tear apart friendships, families, and churches.

Gossip is talking about a situation with somebody who is neither a part of the problem nor a part of the solution. If we’re honest, what we’re doing is making ourselves feel a little more important at somebody else’s expense. We’re talking about their hurts and their problems to make us feel like we’re morally superior to them. That’s the danger and the hurt of gossip.

There’s a story in the Old Testament about a family that struggled with gossip. Moses had a sister named Miriam who one day got caught up in gossiping about Moses among the rest of the people. God called Moses and Miriam in and had a little talk. He spoke with Miriam and told her what she’d done wrong—and right there on the spot, God gave her leprosy. You may be thinking, “That sounds terrible, but I’d like that to happen to the person who gossiped about me. Maybe not leprosy—but a really bad stomach flu, so that person knows how much this hurt.”

Do you know what God did next? He invited Moses to pray for Miriam’s healing—the person who gossiped against him.

Maybe you’ve been deeply hurt by gossip and things that have been said around the office or by the broken confidence of a friend or family member. Here’s what God says to you: “Pray for the person who gossiped against you so that you can be released from the hurt in your life.”

Or maybe you’ve been the one gossiping. This story is in the Old Testament to remind us how serious gossip is and how hurtful it can be to people, whatever side of it you’re on.

Keeping confidences enables you to connect to others in productive, healthy, and genuine ways.

Proverbs 11:13 says, “A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret” (NIV).

Are you the kind of person that keeps people’s confidences so they can trust you?

PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>

For more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit pastorrick.com!

Get God’s answers to life’s tough questions!

Everyone faces hard decisions in life. And when we do, there’s only one place to discover God’s answers. You’ll never find them if you’re looking in the wrong place.

Pastor Rick Warren wants to show you how the Bible answers 12 of life’s toughest questions in his book, God’s Answers to Life’s Difficult Questions.

You’ll learn the answers to questions such as . . .

• How can I cope with stress?
• How can I rebound from failure?
• How can I be confident in a crisis?
• How can I overcome loneliness?

We’ll send you God’s Answers to Life’s Difficult Questions as a gift for your donation to share Daily Hope with more people. So request your copy when you give below.

Thank you for your partnership in reaching the least, the last, and the lost!

*The USA IRS code permits you to deduct the amount of your financial gift to Daily Hope that exceeds the fair market value of materials you received from Daily Hope.

This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

You can listen to Rick Warren on OnePlace.com.