05.06.11 The 9th Practice for Responding to Negative Gossip About You : Embrace the Truth
Embrace the Truth
Sometimes, a gossiper could invent a bad and baseless rumour about you from nowhere! That can be very painful especially if the people you thought would see through those lies choose to believe the gossiper. As already mentioned, one of the most likely reactions could be to defend yourself but sometimes that window may not be there; and even if it were, you may not be able to clear your name before every Tom, Dick and Harry. That is where you have to identify the few people who believe in you. And, quite frankly, there will always be at least one person who will be ready to go by the truth you convey.
Coming to our encounter and amidst all the defamatory gossip we faced, there was a handful of clients who believed in us despite the odds; insisting that the rumour was untrue; a thing which gave us tremendous encouragement as we went through the inferno. What kept us afloat the entire time was the assurance that God knew the truth and that He would vindicate us one day, though we did not know how and when. And, He eventually did.
Nehemiah refused to consider the rumours and gossip of naysayers. He must have known that God required the wall of Jerusalem to be rebuilt as prophesied in Jeremiah 33:6-7 where God had said (NLT): 6“Nevertheless, the time will come when I will heal Jerusalem’s wounds and give it prosperity and true peace. 7I will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel and rebuild their towns. So, that must have been the ‘truth’ that kept Nehemiah going, even when Sanballat and Tobiah threatened to report their non-truths to the King of Persia.
Therefore, clear yourself with those people who matter then leave the rest to ‘think what they want to think’ or ‘say what they want to say’, since you may not be able to force your facts ‘down everyone’s throat’. One day, they will discover who was lying and who was telling the truth when what was done in secret comes out in the open (Luke 8:17). In other words, rather than losing heart, console yourself with the truth.