There was a time I loved gossip. The drama of others’ lives.
It was comical to laugh about the insane things that happen. It was acceptable to consume for my entertainment because it didn’t happen to me.
Except – those are still real people.
Let’s take the current hot gossip: Adam Levine sexted other women. There are countless memes and jokes being shared. Every time I open social media, within seconds I see something in relation to it. Rather than finding it comical, I am frustrated that this is the societal norm. What happened is awful, sad, and disrespectful to every single party involved – including himself.
Why is any of this a laughing matter?
Do we all joke about things like this as a way of protecting ourselves? We can’t understand it or don’t want to acknowledge how heartbreaking it is or imagine ourselves in that position, so we tear him apart and judge and make jokes at his expense. Why, instead of laughing and gossiping and pointing fingers, aren’t we using this as a catalyst to DO BETTER?
It’s easy to minimize things into basic categorizations so we don’t have to dig deeper. We don’t understand something, so we let society tell us what’s true about it because brokenness makes us uncomfortable. Adam Levine is a narcissist. Your neighbor who got a DUI is a drunk. Your friend who struggles with porn is a pervert. The mom on the PTA who cheated on her husband is a whore.
No – what they are is human. Hurting. Broken. They are imperfect, just like the rest of us, but in different ways…. or maybe not different ways.
We are not defined by our brokenness. We never know the full story of what happens in others’ lives or why – and there is always more than meets the eye.
We don’t have to excuse poor behavior, but we also don’t need to add to the pain. God calls us to love one another. Help each other. He is the judge – he doesn’t need our assistance. What he wants us to do is contribute to the solution. Be the hands and feet. Offer a prayer or a hug instead of gossip. Have a conversation. Show compassion. Start a movement. It has to start somewhere. Let it start with us.