“Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips.  Do not incline my heart to any evil thing, to practice deeds of wickedness with men who do iniquity; And do not let me eat of their delicacies.” Psalm 141:3-4

It is no secret that most women’s weaknesses are that of gossiping.  The Bible is extremely clear about gossip but still we women chose to partake in the extra curricular activity of spreading information we have no business speaking of.  We even get as crafty as saying things like, “can I pray for so and so, she is dealing with _____________” (fill in the blank).  Yes, most of us have fallen into this form of gossip, even though we are trying to, with a genuine heart, pray for the person that we feel sorry for, it is still gossip.  If you feel the need to pray for someone who is on your heart either ask their permission a head of time or tell the prayer warriors you have an unspoken prayer, meaning they can just simply pray “Lord we lift up whatever is on our sister’s heart” and leave it at that.

I know I have been really guilty of this at times, I feel justified in that I am “venting” about my frustrations about people to my “godly council of women.”  It is still wrong and not justified in the least.  He does not want us to gossip at all, positive gossip is still gossip.  You could be so excited for a friend’s pregnancy and want to share your joy for them by telling others but it is not your joy to share and therefore you are gossiping!

Please understand, I do believe God gave us godly people to be our godly council in times of crisis but you can seek advice without divulging personal information about someone else.  If that person happens to know the person you are referring to, when you are seeking their advice, then you need to seek someone else’s counsel so that they are unable to guess who you are referring to.

We are to “set a guard over our mouth” in the form of Christ.  Before speaking about something, ask yourself if it is information that glorifies the Lord and does not show any form of gossiping.  If you cannot answer both of those questions with a resounding yes then you should probably walk around with Duct Tape on your mouth until you get the hang of keeping it closed.

Learning to wear a “Christ filter.”