Jesus Changes Lives,
May He change the way we communicate.

Roll these truths around in your soul, asking the Holy Spirit to provoke the behavioral growth.

1. Get my heart right with God, truly desiring the best blessing for others.
2. Guard my tongue. Be often, quick, and public in praise and blessing. Be seldom, quiet, and private with correction and solemn concerns.
3. Go directly to individuals when aware they may have a concern about me; go ask.
4. Go directly to individuals when aware they may profit from caring confrontation; go to them (only them) with my humble concern.
5. ONLY share with someone else (eg. Church leader, Spouse, Small Group, Friend) a) When permission has been granted; or b) When biblical discipline or growth model is being applied from Scripture.
6. Direct those who come to you about another, to go directly back to that individual. Do not listen. Just pray. And then follow up to make sure they followed through.
7. Connect individuals with other individuals whenever those two people have not been able to reconcile on their own.

“Blessed are the peacemakers”
Matthew 5:9

“Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ‘How many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, not up to seventimes, but seventy- seven times.”
Matthew 18:21-22

“But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
Colossians 3:8-10, 12-13

“Speaking the truth in love, we will grow up into Him who is the Head, that is, Christ.”
Ephesians 4:15

“All of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with a blessing, because to this you were called to inherit a blessing. For, ‘Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it.”
1 Peter 3:8-11

“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone”
Romans 12:18

“Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
Colossians 4:6

“Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”
Proverbs 16:24

“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”
Ephesians 4:29

“For out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.”
Matthew 12:34

“What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean’. For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.”
Mark 7:20-22

“The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man’s inmost parts.”
Proverbs 26:22

“He who winks maliciously causes grief, and a chattering of fools comes to ruin. The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life…”
Proverbs 10:10-11a

“If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or tax collector.”
Matthew 18:15-17

“He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity. ”
Proverbs 21:23

“With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be.” James 3:9-10

“Nor should there be any obscenity, foolish talk or coarse jesting, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.”
Ephesians 5:4

“Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load.”
Galatians 6:1-5

“Let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way. Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”
Romans 14:13, 19

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘let me take the speck out of your eye’, when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”
Matthew 7:1-5

“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder’, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother shall be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca’ (Aramaic term of de-value and contempt), is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’, will be in danger of the fire of hell. Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother, then come offer your gift.”
Matthew 5:21-24

“The first to present his case seems right, until another comes forward and questions him.”
Proverbs 18:17

“A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends.”
Proverbs 16:28