Latest / Prayer Before Work / What Does Your Manager Say About You When You're Not There? - Prayer Before Work
Transcript
- Sean Graver: You started noticing it in small moments, like your manager mentioning something another coworker did wrong in a tone that's maybe a little too casual or or worse, maybe a a little too enjoyable. And it happens more than once. And somewhere in the back of your mind, a question starts forming that you can't quite shake. If he talks about them like this, what does he say about me when I'm not in the room? My name is Sean. And welcome back to Prayer Before Work. You know, King Solomon writes about exactly this kind of pattern in Proverbs sixteen twenty-eight, where it reads, A dishonest man spreads strife, and a whisperer separates close friends. Now, did you hear the outcome Solomon names? It it separates close friends. So gossip. Doesn't just describe a moment of venting, it erodes trust, one comment at a time, even when the person doing it doesn't see themselves as doing anything wrong. Now you can't control whether your manager talks about people when they're not around, but you can pay attention to what that pattern tells you, and you can choose not to to participate in any of it. Now that might mean not adding your own commentary when he brings up a coworker's mistake. Even just staying neutral instead of piling more on top of it. And it might mean being intentional about what you share with him about your own struggles, since information handed to someone who gossips tends to travel further than you'd want. And it's worth asking yourself whether you've ever been the one starting a conversation like this about someone else. Because the instinct to talk about people behind their backs isn't limited to managers. So let's pray. God, give us the discernment to recognize when someone's pattern of talking about others should change how much we share with them. Help us to stay out of conversations that tear people down instead of building trust. And search our own hearts too. Show us if we've been part of the problem that we're noticing in someone else. Make us people who are safe to talk to and and who don't need to talk about others to feel important. In Jesus' name, amen. Now go make today a count.