Your words matter

Believe it or not!!  SOMEONE is listening to you!!  And your words make a difference, whether they be positive or negative.  They matter.

This weekend I was floored by a social media post from an owner of a small business in my town.  A post that I found offensive, and when he was challenged, it went from mild to wild.  My first thought was “If this is the kind of man he is, I do NOT want to do business with him.”  Then…  IMMEDIATELY … a situation came to mind about Ebenezer.  Some words were said in front of someone (by a MEMBER of our church), and this person walked away thinking “If THIS is an example of Ebenezer, that church has serious problems.”

TRUE STORY.

And it grieves me.  I often talk about how our presence in the community is a representation of Ebenezer AS WELL AS the Kingdom of God.

There is no defense for the things that were said.  I might think “Well, the one who was offended might be looking for an excuse to not attend and engage a church.”  But that doesn’t matter one bit.

I might argue that NO ONE at Ebenezer is perfect.  That we make mistakes, ALL OF US.  In fact, follow me around for a little while and see how imperfect I am!!  AND I AM THE PASTOR!!  But that is no excuse, either.

The truth is, YOUR WORDS MATTER.  MINE DO, TOO.  Who we are in our communities is who we are, period!

WHO ARE YOU?