DEVOTION, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2012
“Criticizer
or Encourager?”
BY
BAYLESS CONLEY
Verse 10 in the book of Jude talks about those who "speak
evil of whatever they do not know."
Criticism, many times, stems from ignorance. People tend
to criticize things they do not know anything about.
A number of years ago, a man came up to me after a
service. He had never been to our church before, but he was pretty
upset. I had taught that particular night about the baptism in the Holy Spirit and what the Scripture had to say about speaking in other
tongues.
He told me, "This church is really off-balance. You
overemphasize speaking in tongues." I asked, "Really…how many
services have you been to at our church?" His reply was, "Just
this one."
So I asked him, "How many of my recorded messages have you
listened to?" His response was, "None." I told him,
"That seems a little imbalanced. Why
don't you stick around for a while and find out what we're about, then see if
you feel the same after staying here for a few months."
He said, "Okay, I will." He ended up staying and
loving the church.
Too often we are quick to criticize, even when we don't know the
whole story. Be careful about criticizing others. Too often what
you hear is just rumor.
Do not be a criticizer. Be an encourager. Be a
person who is known for always seeking to lift and bless, not speaking evil of
whatever you do not know.
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