Ah. the wonderful world of relationships and friendships. Isn’t it crazy how one person can get you to laugh like crazy one second and then the next second you are crying in your room because of a comment they made? Your friends have that kind of power. YOU have that kind of power. I’ll be honest. I've had a thousand fights with my friends, but I've learned so much from them! Let me share some of these things so you don’t have to make the same mistakes I did.
Tip One:
One of the major mistakes I have made when it comes to friendships is not referencing the Bible when I need some answers. Have you seen that thing?! They should brand it: God’s Google! All truth and no AI! Ha! I just tickled myself. Yes I laugh at my own jokes. Not judging is in there too.
No matter what you do, no matter who you decide to spend your time with, do it God's way. I promise it's the best way. Need some examples? Here's some verses on friendship. Colossians 3:13, Ecclesiastes 4:10, and Proverbs 12:26. (There are many more but better a few than none.) If you want, you can reference actual Google if you want to find some more.
Tip Two:
Gossiping can seem fun at the moment, but it really comes back to bite you later. I was stuck in that sticky trap for a long time. I felt bad about it but everyone did it so it was ok! Right? NOOOOOOO!!!!! Okay I think you understand. No excuses. Don’t gossip. Period. How do you know your gossiping? Simple. Just ask yourself if you can say the thing that you just said to their face. For example: You would never say, “Your hair is greasy”, to their face! (I hope) but you could say, “You had a great presentation in Social Studies” to their face. See the difference?
One of the problems for me is that I never had a way to separate myself from those situations. I know how hard it is. You have that problem too? No way! It's your lucky day! Here are four ways to shut down gossip include four levels.
One: Say something nice or a complement about the person they are talking about. That didn’t work?
Two: Try to change the subject. You can do it sneakily or you can straight out say let's change the subject (I’ve done that before) That didn’t work either?
Three: Say, “Please don’t gossip.” This can be offensive and is a slippery slope because you don’t want to make yourself look better than them so maybe just skip to four.
Four: Walk away or separate yourself from the situation. Worst case scenario, say you have to use the restroom. I truly think that people respect me a little more because when I walk away from gossip it reassures them that I won’t gossip about them either. If you want more tips, read my second post on friendship!
"A dishonest man spreads strife, and a gossip separates close friends."
Proverbs 16:28