“Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” Romans 12:10

Words are not neutral - they can create and destroy. They are either building others up, or they are tearing others down. It is easy today to say things to people online that we normally wouldn't say to their face.
- What are some examples of both good and bad use of words during a typical day at Emmanuel?
Read Matthew 12:34, “For from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.”
- How does loving someone require more than the right words?
- How does empathy change our words? How does it reflect what is in our hearts?
Read Proverbs 18:21, “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”
- Talk about a time in your life where someone said something either to your face or behind your back that really hurt you.

Send an email to Pastor John with the answer to the below question(s) (jessig@ecaoh.com). Engage this section as a group or on your own. If you are in a group, designate someone to send the answer on behalf of your group.
Gossip and harsh words often come from selfishness. It is easy to put others down to feel better about ourselves for a moment. However, God calls us to a higher standard. We are to live in love, saying only what is helpful for others. This is not a suggestion, but a command, and one day “everyone will have to give account on the day of judgement for every empty word they have spoken” (Matthew 12:36).
- What are some ways to learn how to choose life giving words?
- What is one way we can learn to truly care about the people in our lives?

Use this time to pray for each other. You can do that by keeping a prayer request journal or by asking for personal prayer requests or prayers that relate to the day’s topic.
- Ask each person to share one prayer request.
- Spend your remaining time praying for each other.

Chapel - Gossip Day 1 (September 22nd)