day 1020: T.H.I.N.K. - Part 2: Helpful

"The lips of the godly speak helpful words, but the mouth of the wicked speaks perverse words."

Last week was filled with news about what happens when an email or communication is discovered that turns out to reveal actions and behaviors that are deceptive, dishonest and unseemly. It's worth taking a few Purposed worKING posts to remind ourselves of how we should conduct ourselves with electronic communication.  There are no secrets in the digital age and so we must T.H.I.N.K. before we act, write or speak.

Before we write and send that text or email, let's ask ourselves if the message we are writing is truly "Helpful"? I receive messages all the time that in the end of the day might be interesting or entertaining but really aren't that helpful to anyone else other than to the person who is sending them to somehow glorify their own experiences. This is part of the societal issues that we face with social media.  Where once it was not thought well of to "brag" about places visited, things seen, experiences had, people met, etc., today, we think nothing of posting every bit of our life experience and expecting that others will find it helpful to them.  I'm as guilty as anyone.  Last week I posted a picture of an incredible rainbow that I saw while on vacation in Hawaii.  I thought it so beautiful that I wanted to share it with others.  But, in hindsight, I blew it because I didn't just post the picture with a statement about nature and God's beauty, I had to tell everyone that I saw it in Maui.  That small extra bit of information wasn't helpful really, it only boasted of where I was, which to me was "special".  I may be going to the extreme here, but it's that form of rigorous filtering that we should be putting on our communication.  Think about it before it's sent. If it's not helpful, then don't push the button.

As believers are are to monitor our words and communication even more so as we carry with us the example and reputation of Jesus and other believers with us in all that we do.  Solomon tells us in the Proverbs of how important it is that our words be helpful to others.  Let's be careful with our communication today.  In that email, text, or post, let's question how helpful we are being to others.  The opposite of being helpful is being selfish and that is not what we want to be known for today.

Reference: Provers 10:32 (New Living Translation)