Breath Mint, Anyone?

August 6, 2009
By

READ: Galatians 6:1-5
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. —Galatians 6:2A new Web site helps you tell a co-worker what you’re afraid to say in person. Comments like: “A breath mint would be beneficial today” or “Your cell phone ringer is very loud today” or “Your perfume/cologne is very strong on a regular basis.” You confront issues anonymously by having the Web site send an e-mail message for you.

It’s understandable that we’re cautious in talking to others about something that bothers us. But when it comes to confronting fellow believers about their sin, that’s serious. We might wish we could do it anonymously, yet we have to do it face to face.

Galatians 6:1-5 offers some guidelines for confronting a fellow Christian who is living a sinful lifestyle. The first requirement is that we’re close to the Lord ourselves, and that we don’t exalt ourselves as superior to the one who is sinning. Then we are to look at the situation as restoring the person, not bringing condemnation. We’re to have “a spirit of gentleness,” all the while keeping in mind that we too may be tempted. Jesus also gave instructions that can help us with issues of sin against us personally (Matt. 7:1-5; 18:15-20).

With God’s enablement we can courageously and sensitively confront and restore others. — Anne Cetas

Lord, give us courage to confront
Believers who have strayed,
And then with gentleness restore
By coming to their aid. —Sper

To help people get back on the right path, walk with them and show them the way.

  • Anonymous

    I never been such a church person to confront anyone though sometime I feel like confronting everyone! What a dilema for me! But as rule

    for me I go around the Jericho of somebody’s problem seven times,marching and studying every fact until I know every nut and

    cranny of the details, then I shout “God! Help me deliver my freind! Then look at mine, I beseech you!”…

  • http://www.christianbooksbibles.com Heather

    I debated putting this on here yesterday as I’ve also never been one to want to confront another. I always feel I have no business doing that because I’m not perfect. But I don’t suppose God needs us to be perfect to be faithful followers and helpers of His. Oh but I will struggle with this to my dying day. Who wants to offend another person? Not me! And almost everyone gets offended when you mention something they are doing that may not be right with God. I just don’t know how to do this.

  • Anonymous

    I Heather, that you are truly noble in measuring yourself before undertaking such a ‘confrontation’. But if we are truly convinced that what a brother or sister does is to their detriment, we can

    perhaps coax them to the right path and gently tell them that we nobody to point out things but it is just that we REALLY love them and it not a ‘me good’ thing…

    Passerby





About the author:

Hi, my name is Heather Manning and I am the Customer Care Manager for ChristianBooksBibles.com. I am the mother to 5 children, two grown daughters, and three more blessings under 7 yrs old! I love working for this company because I get to talk to Christian brothers and sisters every single day and that is simply awesome.

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