Contact Me

If you enjoy my blog and would like to contact me, you may reach me at this email: dena.netherton@gmail.com

Some of my stories are published in:
A Cup of Comfort Devotional for Mothers and Daughters (Adams Media, 2009)
Chicken Soup: What I Learned from the Dog (2009)
Love is a Flame (Bethany House, 2010)
Extraordinary answers to Prayer (Guideposts, 2010)
Love is a Verb (Bethany House, 2011)
Big Dreams from Small Spaces (Group Publishing, 2012)

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Friendly Persuasion

I had to un-friend someone on Facebook the other day.
The guy kept pressing his political viewpoint.
It wasn't that I agreed or disagreed with his statements.
It was the way he went about expressing his opinion.
With anger, accusations, and insults.
Hello?
I "friend" you, and then you spend days and weeks insulting me and others of opposing political stance?
Enough.

My "friend" may disagree with me vehemently.
He may have a completely different world-view.
I  have no problem that he expresses his thoughts.
I welcome his persuasive, logical, calm debate.
I call on him to provide provable facts.
And I love to see true, unaltered statistics.
I also don't mind that he's passionate about his subject.

But, please, don't attack me (and my other friends) personally!

There's an old saying: You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

Scripture says it this way: "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander." (1 Pet. 3:15 NIV)

I'm so grateful that we live in this day and age, where we writers enjoy the benefit of multiple media outlets for our words. How wonderful that God has given us this opportunity to proclaim Him and His wonderful Gospel.

My unpleasant Facebook experience helps me keep in mind the Lord's admonition to speak with gentleness and respect, preserving each person's dignity, while holding up, without compromise, the truth of God's Word.




(And a new feature of "God 'n me" is a weekly vocabulary word.)
The word for this week is: boor 
Noun. A rude, unmannerly person
Used in a sentence: The man's boorish behavior on Facebook persuaded me to "unfriend" him.





2 comments:

  1. There's been a concerted effort to silence opposing views. It seems there is tolerance for everyone these days except Christians.

    How sad. I don't think Jesus would have felt very if He walked our highways and byways.

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  2. Yes, and the only people Jesus attacked verbally were the Pharisees who were loading terrible burdens on others. He called them "white-washed tombs." thanks for your comment, Susan.

    ReplyDelete