1/ It amazes me how often Christians speak publicly in ways that don't honor God, that bear no resemblance to the fruit of the Spirit. We seem to think that, because we are right (or at least believe we are), we are justified in whatever we say, however we say it.

2/ I've watched a few dif chats today, & there's so little grace, so little margin of error before one person pounces on another, publicly shaming him/her even for unwitting mistakes. We elevate ourselves by demonstrations of our virtue at the cost of another's embarrassment.

3/To be clear, I wasn't the one on the receiving end of these jabs today (though I have been in the past). I just felt compassion for the folks who were.

4/I know Christians aren't the only people who do this, but we ostensibly hold up grace, love, and forgiveness as virtues central to our faith. When we act in ways that are blatantly contrary to these, it undermines the credibility of our witness.

5/Our own Scripture teaches, "The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one's life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell" (James 3:6).

6/And the keyboard is also a fire, perhaps even more so than the tongue, because it allows us to reach so many people so quickly.

7/In the past I've had people tell me, "I just tell it like it is!" or "I cut through the BS," or "The truth hurts." But these are copouts. It is possible to be truthful without being nasty, without intentionally hurting other people. It just may require more thought.